Max and the Tag-Along Moon

In this quiet nighttime picture book, Cooper tells a simple yet emotionally resonant story. As young Max says goodbye to his grandfather, he points out the full moon, and Granpa promises him that "That ol' moon will always shine for you…on and on!" All during the long car ride home, Max looks out the back window, keeping his eyes on the moon -- "up a hill, down a hill," "through a small town with roundabout streets," "at the mouth of a tunnel and out the other end." Max is reassured by the moon's continued presence, happy that Granpa's promise holds. Then, clouds cover the sky. Max searches for the moon but sees only darkness; he misses both the moon and his grandfather. Later, tucked up in bed, a soft yellow light fills his room, and Max rejoices at the moon's return. "Max knew then that whenever he saw the moon, he would think of Granpa, on and on." The lack of extraneous detail (Who is driving the car? One of Max's parents? Who else is in his family?) means that the reader's focus remains solely on the journey and on Max's connection with his grandfather. And the art, for all its textured lushness and warmth, is just as tightly focused: on the landscape of the journey, on the moon, or on Max himself. And all the circles (moon, side-view mirror, tunnel, clouds, fountain, Max's round head) reinforce the idea of the most important circle here -- Granpa's arms around Max. A picture book as suffused with love as its pages are with moonlight. martha v. parravano