Review - A Kite for Moon

A Kite for Moon
by Jane Yolen & Heidi E. Y. Stemple
illustrated by Matt Phelan
Date: 2019
Publisher: Zonderkidz
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: library

A Kite for Moon, written by New York Times bestselling author of How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight? Jane Yolen and her daughter, Heidi E. Y. Stemple, tells a heartfelt story about a young boy's fascination and unlikely friendship with the moon. With whimsical illustrations by award-winning artist Matt Phelan, the story begins when the little boy, who is flying his kite, notices a sad Moon. He sends up kites to her, even writing notes to Moon promising he will come see her someday. This promise propels him through years and years of studying, learning, and training to be an astronaut! Dedicated to Neil Armstrong, and a perfect children's book to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first United States moon landing, the cover of this book will captivate readers with eye-catching spot UV, foil, and embossing.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

A Kite for Moon starts off fine, but I expected more of an emotional punch. Moon is lonely as she looks down at Earth. A little boy notices that she's sad and sends kites up to her to cheer her up. As he grows, he studies science and eventually becomes an astronaut so that he can actually pay Moon a visit.

The illustrations are cute, but the story is very sparse. It would work in a classroom as an introduction to a unit on the space program. However, as a book for pure reading enjoyment, it falls a little flat.

Kids who are really interested in space will likely be underwhelmed by this. Find them a good non-fiction book instead.

Premise: 3/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 3/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 2/5

Overall: 2.67 out of 5

Review - Merbaby's Lullaby

Merbaby's Lullaby
by Jane Yolen
illustrated by Elizabeth O. Dulemba
Date: 2019
Publisher: Little Simon
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 24
Format: e-book
Source: library

From New York Times bestselling author Jane Yolen comes a lilting lullaby from the bottom of the sea.

Hush, foam rocker,
sleep, wave breaker.
Close your eyes and dream,
tide breaker.

A hush-filled bedtime rhyme for parents to share with their newborns, Merbaby’s Lullaby is an underwater cradlesong written by Jane Yolen and illustrated by Elizabeth O. Dulemba. Join a mermaid as she helps her merbaby to sleep, rocking with the gentle waves, singing with the whispering whales, and settling in with sea stars lighting the way to sweet dreams.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

This bedtime board book for toddlers left me a little underwhelmed. Don't get me wrong... the pictures are lovely! But the rhyming text leaves something to be desired. It's not bad; it's just very simple and very poetic... so poetic, in fact, that I question whether toddlers will be able to really understand it.

However, given that it's a book obviously intended for bedtime reading, perhaps it doesn't really matter if it's understandable by little kids. They'll probably take a look at the adorable pictures and enjoy seeing the little merbaby in their environment, getting ready for bed in their home under the waves. The illustrations are really where this book's strength lies. The merbaby swims through the ocean and sees all their friends: an octopus, starfish, stingrays, whales, crabs, and plenty of fish. The colours are nice and bright (but not too bright), and the gender-neutral merbaby and universal story (everyone has to go to bed... even merbabies!) make this book a good choice for all youngsters.

I guess I just find it difficult to get excited about board books. Usually, there's not enough text/story for me. In this case, the amount of words is okay; I just question the highly poetic nature of them. I mean, I'm an adult and I'm still puzzling a little over "foam rocker" (especially given that the accompanying illustration is of a dolphin blowing bubble rings for the merbaby).

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

Enjoyment: 3/5

Overall: 3.29 out of 5