When the Moon Came Down

PreS-Gr 1-The lush illustrations in this import are not enough to buoy the stilted text and forced story. Little Bunny wakes one night wishing for a friend to help stave off his fear of the dark. The moon sees him and befriends him, and each night they enjoy each other's company until the moon is full and lifts the bunny up to dance with the stars. The stars give him a moon rock, and when he awakens, he is home and knows that the moon and moon rock will protect him from the dark forever. The text-heavy story is written in third person present tense, and the writing is stiff. The story is rather odd, though not without internal logic, and feels like a vehicle for the illustrations. Oral's painterly style is stunning. The bunny's large, melting brown eyes give him an appealingly worried look, and the primarily dark blue backgrounds perfectly contrast with the brightly glowing moon, stars, and bunny's white fur. While the moon is portrayed with only the barest indication of a face, it has arms to hold the bunny. The whole thing has the feeling of an artist's attempt to find a story in his imagery.