Where does moonlight come from? Why the Moon Shines presents young children with a possible answer in this picture book about friendship, sharing and the power of kindness.
Long ago the moon was very sad. Unlike the sun, who blazed bright and was loved by all, the moon couldn’t be seen in the darkness. While the sun invited folks to wake and enjoy the day, and was greeted daily by happy smiles, the moon was greeted only by fears of the dark. More than anything, the moon wished he could help people see in the darkness and ease their insecurities. The moon was lonely, just like the people below him.
Luckily, the sun heard the moon’s wish. Generous and thoughtful, the sun shared his light. When people saw the moon’s new, bright light, they smiled. Soon everyone was happy and no longer frightened. The sun warned the moon that he couldn’t share his light all the time – “There will be nights that your light will slowly go away until you will no longer seen,” he says — but the moon mustn’t worry; the light will come back soon.
Why the Moon Shines is an innovative and sweet story. Unfortunately, several spelling errors detract from the charm (for instance, moonlight is spelled as two words while the possessive of moon is spelled “moons”). In addition, while the illustrations are bold and graphic, they could do with additional complexity to keep children visually engaged in the story. Also, on page two, the sun has no facial expression when one appears on every other page where he makes an entrance.
Author Jade Carr and illustrator Marvin Alonso show great promise as creators for children. With a few tweaks and closer attention to detail, their story could attract an eager young audience.
