Moon Dreams

by Ruth Martin, Olivier Latyk (Illustrator)

A bedtime adventure for sleepy little explorers everywhere.

Luna loves to look at the Moon each night before she drifts off to sleep, but she wonders where it goes during the day. While she dreams, her imagination takes her on a journey as she searches far and wide for where the Moon could possibly go when the Sun is out.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Science, Storytime, Space

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Ruth Martin has been an editor and author of children’s books for many years. She lives in South London with her husband and daughter.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 STARS

Luna who dearly loves the moon and always watches it when she goes to sleep at night because it helps her feel safe and comfortable. She begins to wonder where the moon goes during the day and decides to stay up all night to watch the moon and see where it goes. But, when she inevitably slips away to dreamland, her dreams have glimpses of the moon in them but don't really tell her where the moon actually goes!

This is a cute bedtime story; I enjoyed the sweet, quirky illustrations and the imagination in Luna's dreams. But, it also fell a little flat for me in the end. I guess I expected Luna to really figure out where the moon goes, or at least something a little more scientific than what she finally figures out. It also seems a little unrealistic that she can always see the moon at night (what about during storms, or when it's summer and little ones go to bed before the moon is up?) or that she never saw the moon during the day. Taken as an imaginative story about a girl's fondness for the moon, though, this would make a pleasant and comforting bedtime read.

[Ro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Luna is very interested in the moon and she wonders where it disappears to during the day time. During sleep each night Luna travels to try and locate where the moon goes to in the day time. She travels everywhere until eventually where the moon is. This book is agreat story to tell at bedtime but it is great to do in class with children in relaion to science, space and why we can't see the moon in the daytime. It has great pictures that can also be used in art, children can draw there favourite part of luna's dreams. It is great for children from age 3 upwards for boys and girls.
I came across this book from my babysitting experiences and the little girl loved looking back and forth at the pages and talking about all the pictures in the story. This is one of her favourite books that she gets me to read everytime I babysit.. I love the way the character interest can then bring forth the same excitement to a real little person.

[Ben · Rating 1 out of 5]

I loved this delightful book and the cleverness of having her search for the moon, but then... wtf! It is a perfect learning opportunity to explain how to moon goes around the earth and why we can't see it. You can even demonstrate with your kid with two pieces of fruit. It's really not hard. Yet this book just says, oh the moon lives in space, that's why you can't see it during the day. Seriously? Get out. Scientific books should deal with science. It should be as much, engaging, and great as any other book and I've definitely seen it done, but not this turkey.

[Relyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book for its illustrations. Oh my! The simple story is nice, a lullaby of a book. But, the illustrations make me happy, especially the cover. I really love that the entire book was inspired by a single postcard by the illustrator. How awesome is it that he then illustrated the book?

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sweet story about the moon and dreams and a great book to read at bedtime. For older children, it's a good conversation starter to talk about the rotation of the Earth and the Moon's orbit around the Earth. The illustrations are subtly shaded and soothing and complement the story nicely. We enjoyed reading this story together.

[Erin Murray · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought the illustrations in this book were amazing! The way each scene is displayed was fantastic. I like the way Luna had a question about the Moon and was desperate to find out where it went. The end could've been more factual for my liking but I suppose it could lead into a science lesson about planets and why we only see the moon at night.

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book. I love the description in this book, especially when Martin describes the places Luna is visiting. The story is warm and comforting and surprisingly informative. To a degree.

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

I enjoyed the illustrations, but this book was scientifically inaccurate. You very often see the moon during the day. So I didn't like the plot.

[Hope · Rating 3 out of 5]

Checked out from Kilbourn Public Library 📚 in Wisconsin

[Jenni · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really lovely picture book that will be enjoyed by young children with the attention span to sit and listen to a slightly more detailed story. It’s about a young girl, perhaps Reception year aged, who is fascinated by the moon and wonders where it is when she can’t see it during the day. I really enjoyed her attempts to stay awake all night and watch where it disappears to, and the various places she imagined it might be hiding.

The text itself is very detailed, it’s laden with adjectives and alliterations which result in a pretty rich read (ignoring the temptation to drop lots of alliterations into this review is surprisingly hard). I think if you were going to be reading this aloud you’d probably need a few practice runs as a result of the very detailed text.

The illustrations work really well with the text. They’re very modern looking, the lines and colours are crisp. This paired with the more handwritten style of font balance the detailed text very nicely. I was interested by the way rich turquoises and teals are used as a result of the many night time scenes and yet the book feels warm. The only thing I wasn’t completely sold on was the double page spread that paired turquoise text with a black page. It looks very striking but I found it wasn’t so easy to read.

A final thought I must share is how pleased I was to see a space / science themed story with a female main character. This was a really nice change and made me love the book even more.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best for kids ages 4 and up
Early Literacy Skills: Print Motivation, Vocabulary, Narrative Skills

From cover:
Luna loves to look for the Moon and nighttime, but when she wakes up in the morning, it is nowhere to be seen. Where does the Moon go during the day? She wonders. Luna's dreams take her an o magical journey as she searches for and wide for where the Moon could possibly go when the Sun is out.

Adorable, colorful illustration make Luna and her quest even more lovable. Great for bedtimes.

[Lenore Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Moon Dreams'. A wonderful illustrated story of where does the moon go when it is daytime. Enjoying a bit of fantasy and a lil talk of where is the moon tonight. Then we went on to explore why we do not see it in the daytime. Of course in the book there is an array of fun ideas. We did not dwell into the real science of it but into the fun imagination of the question. My granddaughter really enjoyed helping think up ideas of where is the moon.

[Jess Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a cute-enough story about a little girl who wonders where the moon disappears to every morning when the sun comes up. She tries as hard as she can to follow it at night, but then winds up falling asleep and dreaming of the moon instead. Decent, but not life-changingly awesome. Best for an early elementary crowd who can sit through the length.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrations were amazing in this book. It was a good story about the moon being constant in Luna's life, always watching over her. This could be a good book for when starting a space unit or a moon unit. Not only was it a cute book that would be great for new readers but it also had a good theme and could be used in a classroom for teaching.

[Julia March · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever wondered where the moon goes during the day? Well, Luna does every morning so she is determined to stay up and watch the moon all night. Adorable story with fun illustrations that really make this book.

[Briana · Rating 3 out of 5]

In my opinion, a really great picture book has to have great art and a great story. This book had a really nice story, especially for bedtime; but I am not a big fan of digital art, which this book has...hence the three stars =/

[Marguarite Markley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Where does the moon go during the day? Luna is determined to find out, but she just can't stay awake to watch. This is a beautifully illustrated picture book with soothing text perfect for bedtime, or anytime really.

[Melanie Martel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story about the moon and dreams and good to read at bedtime. It's a good conversation starter to talk about the rotation of the Earth and the Moon's orbit around the Earth. The illustrations are colorful and work well with the story.

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

We liked this book, but wished it had a bit more sky science included (like perhaps a bit about moon phases and such). It is really beautifully illustrated and a sweet little story about a girl who wonders where the moon goes during the day.

[Vanessa Mattingly · Rating 5 out of 5]

a wonderful bedtime story!! leaves reader with a sweet ending and feeling safe! illustrations are great also!! I like how the little girl questions and imagines her own andwers! mini lesson on questioning and using imagination!

[Molly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the wordless spreads, as children can interpret these in their own way...great for narrative skills.

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations are pretty damn amazing. If I ever write a children's book I'm hiring Olivier Latyk.

[Bungle Boo Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute little story and the images really add to the book.
A must for your picture book collection!

[Cassie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet story about a girl who dreams of the moon each night and journeys to discover it's whereabouts in the day.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reminds me of myself... Obsessing over the moon.

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Luna, who loves to look at the moon, wonders where it goes during the day.

[Amanda Carpenter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was good and the book had great illustration. We all enjoyed this story. My niece, my dogs, my parents and myself - during family story time.

[Miri Gifford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up because the cover reminded me of the Pixar short from Brave, and it was just about as lovely.

[Islin Munisteri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some scientific inaccuracies.

[Hope · Rating 3 out of 5]

The illustrations for this story were so great! Very modern-y and design-ery. Loved the deep, bright colors too. The story was adventurous and innocent.