Impossible Moon

Breanna J. McDaniel is the author of Hands Up! and Impossible Moon and a children’s literature scholar. She holds an MA in children’s literature from Simmons College and is currently pursuing her PhD at Cambridge University, where her research focuses on representations of black children in contemporary picture books.Tonya Engel is a self-taught painter and children’s book illustrator whose work can be found in many picture books, among them Our Lady of Guadalupe, Because Claudette, Impossible Moon, and the jacket art for Hurricane Child. Her work is inspired by Southern folk artists. Early in her career, she explored abstract painting but soon began to concentrate on figurative form mixed with emotion and expressionistic narrative. Engel lives in Houston, Texas.

McDaniel’s deliberate storytelling draws thoughtfully on history and mythology while centering Black representation among the stars. Through Mable, this spin on a star story offers a positive example of the importance of reaching for the impossible.