The night Luna was born, the moon was fat and glowing in the sky – and as she grew older, she watched the moon nightly and soon became entranced by its comforting presence.She also dreamt of the moon – crescent moons, half-moons, full moons – but most of all, she dreamt of walking on the moon.
During the day, however, Luna wondered where the moon disappeared to. How could she find out? Stay awake? Not go to sleep? Keep watch for where the moon might go?
Each night, Luna tried to stay awake, but staying awake was so so hard! Did the moon slip into the ocean? Did it retreat to the mountains? Did it stay behind clouds all day? Luna never kept awake long enough to find out – but what she did do was slip into beautiful dreams – dreams that eventually reveal to this curious little girl exactly where the moon goes.
Latyk’s stunning illustrations make reading this book a visual joy. Delectable typesetting (I so love creative typesetting) dances around the images, making for an enchanting storytime journey. I can imagine children would become totally absorbed in the imagery of this book.
But visuals are not the only treat. Martin’s text is beautifully written – unusually written for a picture book – using beautifully descriptive phrases that paint pictures beyond the need for illustration. Both adults and children will warmly appreciate her gorgeous writing style.
Occasional embossing throughout the book provide touch-worthy gloss to the images, and a warmly-portrayed central character further strengthen the storyline and ending. An enchanting, all-rounder of a book.
Title: Where on Earth is the Moon?
Author: Ruth Martin
Illustrator: Olivier Latyk
Publisher: Templar, $16.95 RRP
Publication Date: 1 July 2010
Format: Soft cover
ISBN: 9781921690075
For ages: 4 - 7
Type: Picture Book