Review - Moon Babies

Moon Babies
by Karen Jameson
illustrated by Amy Hevron
Date: 2019
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: library

Just right for fans of Dream Animals, this gorgeously illustrated story-in-verse about baby moons growing up in a celestial nursery is ideal bedtime reading and a perfect new baby gift.

In the starry dark of night, / a secret moon world comes to light. / Make a wish and you just might / visit baby moons tonight. Follow the moon babies on their busy day from waking up in their crescent cradles, to breakfast on the Milky Way, to bundling up for moonwalks, to orbiting the earth in a lunar carousel, and more! And at day's end, watch as the babies finish bathtime with stardust powder, snuggle up with nursery rhymes and lullabies, and finally drift off to sleep. Karen Jameson's charming verse is a joy to read aloud, and Amy Hevron's enchanting illustrations are simply irresistible, making this the perfect read-aloud to send little ones off to dreamland.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

I'm not that impressed with this. Other than the well-flowing rhymes, the book doesn't have a lot going for it: the story is boring, the characters are overly anthropomorphized, and the illustrations are forgettable.

I suppose it would make a decent baby gift, since the only people who are really going to appreciate the text are parents. The little baby moons taken care of by their grannies are just too nonsensical. And referring to a constellation of stars as a "moon dog" could be potentially confusing for older children who are old enough to actually understand the text.

This is fairly underwhelming. It might help children get to sleep (as the meter and rhyme are pretty good, and would probably be soothing if the book were read out loud). But other than that, it's too simple, boring, and stylized for my taste. Your mileage may vary, of course.

Premise: 2/5
Meter: 4/5
Writing: 2/5
Illustrations: 2/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 2/5

Overall: 2.43 out of 5