The Moon Over Star

The Moon Over Star
by Dianna Hutts Aston, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney, 2008, New York: Dial Books for Young Readers. (9780803731073).

Author Website: none

Illustrator Website: http://www.jerrypinkneystudio.com/

Media: graphite, ink and watercolor on paper

Awards and Honors: Coretta Scott King Honor, 2009

Annotation: In the rural south in 1969, a young girl is awed and inspired by the moon landing and dares to dream of what is possible.

Personal Reaction:
     There's a lot going on in this small book. Dianna Hutts Aston addresses poverty, inequality, and the power of dreams while painting a beautiful portrait of the universal wonder and inspirational force that was the moon landing in 1969.

     The story is told from the point of view of Mae, a young African American girl growing up in the rural south. She is completely awed by the moon landing and her family shares her enthusiasm- everyone except for Gramps who wonders aloud why people would "...spend all that money to go to the moon when there's so many folks in need right here on Earth?". Poverty and racism have restricted opportunities for his generation- from the time he was a young child he'd worked the farm, day in and day out, doing the same jobs. Mae dreams of one day going to the moon, and though her generation faces obstacles of poverty and racism, the reader is left hopeful that she will one day realize her aspirations.

     Jerry Pinkney's illustrations, as always, are powerfully gorgeous. I especially liked the wonderfully textured paintings of the moon and earth from space and the double-page spread of the family sitting under the stars on that fateful night, faces turned upwards to the moon. Pinkney's special blend of realism and impressionism beautifully capture the mood of Aston's reflective and stirring story.