A Kite for Moon

In a wistful story that honors Neil Armstrong, the moon is feeling lonely: “No one below was singing to her. No one was sending up rockets or writing poems about her.” But below, a boy at the seashore sees the moon and senses its unhappiness: “So he wrote on his kite, promising to come some day for a visit.” Phelan illustrates in loose, curling forms that conjure a sense of movement. In sequential panels, the boy is seen peering through a small microscope, receiving a telescope as a teenager, and, as a young adult, gazing through the window at the moon. After learning to ride a bike and drive a car, the boy learns to “fly a plane and a rocket. Then one day, when he had learned enough, he went up, up, up in a big rocket ship with a fiery tail.” At last he lands on the moon, touching his hand to its surface: “ ‘Hello, Moon,’ he said. ‘I’ve come for that visit.’ ” Yolen and Stemple remind readers of the simple awe of a most wonderful journey. Ages 4–8. [em](Apr.) [/em]