Goodnight Moon! (and Happy Birthday to Claude Debussy...)

We didn't see a cow jumping over Tuesday night's  "Blue" Moon , but nonetheless we could not stop gazing up at it during our impromptu dinner outside by our pool!

It got me thinking about some of my favorite literary full moons...

Best Literary Moons:
Poetry: The Song of the Jellicles, T.S. Elliot
Wynken, Blynken, and Nod (Dutch Lullaby), Eugene Field
A Full Moon is Rising (collection of poems), Marilyn Singer

Picture Books:
Goodnight Moon, and Wait Til the Moon is Full, Margaret Wise Brown
White is the Moon, Valerie Greeley
Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me, Eric Carle
I'll See You When the Moon is Full, Jim and Susi Gregg Fowler
Owl Moon, Jane Yolen

Non-Fiction:
The Moon Book, Gail Gibbons


Do you have any favorites to add?  I hope you got to enjoy the full moon too - the next Blue Moon isn't set to occur until 2015.

By the way, did you see today's Google Doodle, commemorating the birth of Claude Debussy, composer of the beautiful Clair de Lune ("Moonlight" in French)?

RETRO ROCKETS AND MORE

THIS IS THE LAST DAY YOU CAN ENTER MY SEPTEMBER GIVEAWAY - be sure and leave a comment or click here for details about my drawing for BOB BOOKS SIGHT WORDS. Contest ends at midnight tonight - winner announced tomorrow, Sept. 30, 2011. CONTEST OVER.  Giveaway winner: Theron Mathis!  Congratulations, Theron, send me an email with your address so I can mail you the sets. 

Today I'd like to showcase a unique book, THIS IS THE WAY TO THE MOON, by M. Sasek.  It's one of those books that grabs your attention with its bold, retro artwork. This title was first published in 1963 as This is Cape Canaveral, then later as This is Cape Kennedy. It was reissued in June 2009 as This is the Way to the Moon. Why so many titles?

Cape Canaveral was renamed Cape Kennedy after the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963. However, since the new name wasn't popular with local residents, the former name was restored to the area of Cape Canaveral in 1974. But the NASA installation base there goes by the name Kennedy Space Center, so you can see why this gets confusing!  The new title is a neutral way of describing the space center and the surrounding area.

Miroslav Sasek (born in Prague in 1916, died in 1980) was a Czechoslovakian author/illustrator of nonfiction for children.  From 1959-1974, he published his THIS IS... series.  These wonderful books are full of nostalgia and introduce children to great countries, cities, and landmarks in an entertaining and understandable way. (More about the other titles from his series in a future post).

But back to today's book, THIS IS THE WAY TO THE MOON... it is an awesome historical record of the perceptions and attitudes during the '60s about space (included in this edition are footnotes of facts and figures that have changed since they were first printed).

Kids of all ages (but especially 4-8 year olds) will enjoy the bold, colorful illustrations of giant missiles, huge antennae, astronauts (human and non-human) and even a chocolate space shuttle, all recreated with amazing detail. THIS IS THE WAY TO THE MOON will also jog the memories and delight the souls of those adults who may remember it from their own childhoods.

BEYOND BUZZ LIGHTYEAR:

If your kids love space and the cosmos, you can find more fun book recommendations (fiction and non-fiction) from my past post HERE.

Have you ever wanted to make a child's quilt with a space theme? Check out the adorable fabric at the FAT QUARTER SHOP.

Don't sew? Don't worry - go to The Pat a Cake Baby to order RETRO ROCKET RASCALS themed baby gear HERE.

What about throwing a rocket/astronaut themed birthday party?  CLICK HERE for ideas and a DIY tutorial for making jet pack favors for the attendees. Of course you'll need a rocket ship birthday cake - find a step-by-step recipe HERE from Parenting.com.

Invitations? How about these nifty printable retro rockets from Etsy...

BOOKS ABOUT CONSTELLATIONS, THE MOON, AND SPACE (with some silliness thrown in)

There was a point in time when all my oldest son wanted to check out from the library were books about space and astronomy.  (It was after his Dinosaur and Oceans/Sharks Phases.)  Since we homeschooled, I was completely happy to help him find books that fed his interest!

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In this post I've included books we enjoyed back then - along with a few new ones I've discovered since.  Some are silly, some are sweet, and several are very informative and educational.  So...."To infinity and beyond!!"

PICTURE BOOKS: 

HARRY AND HORSIE by Katie Van Camp, illustrated by Lincoln Agnew.  (ages 3 and up)  A little boy named Harry follows his best-friend-stuffed-animal, "Horsie", out into the night sky in order to rescue him and bring him back home, in this charming retro-space adventure.

HOW TO CATCH A STAR and THE WAY BACK HOME by Oliver Jeffers (ages 3 and up)  Cute childhood fantasy stories and unique illustrations by this new author/illustrator from Belfast, Northern Ireland.

I'LL SEE YOU WHEN THE MOON IS FULL by Jim Fowler, illustrated by Susi Fowler (ages 4-8).  Delightful tale of a father going away on a business trip and how he explains to his son how long until he'll be home: "...when the moon is full."  He proceeds to explain the phases of the moon.
 

WAIT TIL THE MOON IS FULL by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Garth Williams. (ages 4-8).  In this story, a little raccoon must wait - as his mother tells him - "Til the Moon Is Full" to go out into the night.   So he waits, as the moon gets bigger and bigger...

SPACE CASE by Edward Marshall, illustrated by James Marshall.  (Kindergarten and up).  A silly Halloween story, in which a "thing" from outer space thinks he is joining some other aliens, who are actually children out Trick-or-Treating.  Funny humor and illustrations.

NON-FICTION:

THE MOON BOOK by Gail Gibbons. (ages 4-8)  Gail Gibbons does a great job with science books for kids.  Her simple, bright illustrations and explanations with just the right amount of detail, offer a great introduction to young children in this book about the moon.

GLOW-IN-THE DARK CONSTELLATIONS by C.E. Thompson (ages 4-8)

THE GLOW-IN-THE-DARK NIGHT SKY BOOK by Clint Hatchett (ages 9-12)

FIND THE CONSTELLATIONS by H.A. Rey.  (ages 9-12) The statistical data in this classic has been updated, but the vintage illustrations remain the same!

MOONWALK: FIRST TRIP TO THE MOON (Step-into-Reading Book) by Judy Donnelly. (ages 5-8)  Historic trip to the Moon of the crew of APOLLO II and their lunar module, "EAGLE". School Library Journal: The story of Apollo II's historic flight, from lift-off, through 'The Eagle has landed,' to splashdown and quarantine. Donnelly does a good job of setting the stage with chapters on the history of the idea of flight to the moon, astronaut selection and training, and look at the flight's effect on people in general.