Mama, let's make a moon

K-Gr 4-In this imaginative and poetic narrative, a sister enlists her mother's and younger brother's help in making a round silver moon and hanging it to the sky. Folklike silhouette paper cuttings over watercolor backgrounds portray the family's delight in creating something out of nothing. Mama finds a recipe in a box tied with a lock of hair, and the children collect ingredients, including silver from a stream, three jars of fireflies, some marshmallow goo, a dipper of dew, and milk of moo. Soft rhymes move the creation story forward until "they made a BIG moon as wide as the sky" and, with the help of the forest animals, roll and lift it into the sky, "hung in the heavens, from star steps of love." The tale begs to be read aloud, especially at bedtime, with a loved one snuggled close. The detailed and unique illustrations depicting rural mountain life complement the characters' spirit of adventure and sense of family closeness.-Julie R. Ranelli, Queen Anne's County Free Library, Stevensville, MD (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

A mountain family spends a day together in imaginative play. Through beautifully detailed silhouettes, Rice offers an unfolding tableau of charming, evocative scenes in which a bored little girl begs her mother to leave her sewing and make a moon from "secondhand stardust, and leftover love." Her little brother, the dog and even the animals from the holler get involved in the effort to hang the moon "in the heavens, from star steps of love." The artist's skill is evident in the well-designed pages. Some silhouettes are presented in traditional black-on-white style, some against colored backdrops, but all are crafted with attention to bringing out the joy of the family members as they cavort in the assembly of real and imagined ingredients from Mama's recipe. But while the art is appealing and will invite repeated viewings of the pages, the story is less successful. It's whimsical and rhythmic--Rice is a songwriter--but the syrupy message doesn't provide quite enough of a storyline to match the quality of the art. For those who appreciate a touch of nostalgia and old-fashioned family values. (Picture book. 47)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.