The first book that I read was Rabbit Moon by Jean Kim. This is a delightful story that is actually based on Korean folklore. The author's note states that when Koreans look at the full moon they see the outline of a rabbit standing next to a mortar pounding rice into rice cakes. When you look up at the sky and see the rabbit in the moon, you make a wish.
Jean Kim wondered what the rabbit would wish for and that is the basis of this story. The rabbit turns wishes into stars. However, the rabbit wishes for adventure and friends. He uses a star to parachute down to earth and meets animals who become his friends. Together, they bicycle, read, drift on their boat, and swim. They also gaze at the stars in the sky until one day - there are no more stars! Rabbit knows what needs to be done. He repairs his star, flies to the moon, and continues to turn wishes into stars. One day, his friends wish to see him and Rabbit and his friends smile at each other through a telescope. .
I put together a flannel board which features five different colored moons and had the children guess which one the rabbit was behind. The rabbit was behind the blue moon!
The second and last story that I read was Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes. This story tells the tale of an adorable kitten trying to catch the moon because she thinks it's a bowl of milk in the sky! She tumbles down the stairs, climbs up a tree, and jumps into the pond, but she can't get the bowl of milk in the sky! Fortunately, when she gets home, a bowl of milk out on the porch is just waiting for her and she laps it up quickly.
Here's a list of other books about the moon:
A Big Mooncake for Little Star by Grace Lin: Little Star's Mama bakes a mooncake for her to celebrate the Mid Autumn Moon Festival which is Grace Lin's favorite Asian holiday. Her Mama tells Little Star to wait until the holiday to eat it. Little Star nibbles at the mooncake night after night and during this process her mooncake shows the different phases of the moon.
The Moon Was the Best by Charlotte Zolotow and illustrated through Tana Hoban's photographs tells the story of a mother's trip to Paris as she describes the sights of Paris to her little girl. The girl asks her mother "What was the best?" Her mother replies, "Oh, the moon was the best because it was the same moon shining on you, so I knew we weren't far apart at all".
In City Moon by Rachael Cole and Blanca Gomez, a little boy and his mother walk through the city to see the moon in different places. This book has bright big beautiful illustrations and would be good for a story time.
Max and the Tag-Along Moon by Floyd Cooper: After Max has to say goodbye to Grandpa, Grandpa reminds him that the moon at Grandpa's house is the same moon that will follow Max on Max's ride back to his home. Max watches the moon on his journey to home.
The Mouse Who Ate the Moon: A Peek-Through Story Book by Petr Horacek: In this story, a mouse mistakes a banana for the moon and eats it. Heartbroken, the mouse tells his friends that he has eaten the moon! His friends reassure him that he hasn't and the mouse is relieved and happy to see the moon in the sky that night!
Any of the books in Frank Asch's Moon Bear series!
Let's Explore the Moon by Walt K. Moon: This book is a nonfiction book about the moon for toddlers and preschoolers.
No comments:
Post a Comment