Over the Moon

W called this story of a couple who take an airplane trip to adopt a baby girl "an ebullient tribute for families whose members may have come from a faraway place." Ages 2-8.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

PreSchool-Grade 1. Bright, fanciful folk-art illustrations set the mood for (but occasionally get in the way of) this loving story of adoption. The smoothly flowing text is reassuring throughout, reflecting the joy of the new parents and ending with the "forever and always" that is the promise of adoption. The foster parents ("the kind people who had taken care of her") are pictured. The first day includes the first telling of the adoption story to the baby girl, "You grew like a flower in another lady's tummy." However, the first couple of illustrations are problematic. On the first spread, a baby is shown alone on a hillside sitting on a beanbag cloud with a city in the distance. The text states: "Once upon a time a teeny-tiny baby was born." Babies aren't born alone on hillsides, and even though this one is smiling, the picture doesn't seem reassuring. Adopted children need to know that they were born like other children, and did not appear magically without human connection. Also, though the text realistically recounts the new parents' first-day nervousness, the baby is pictured as smiling throughout instead of showing a range of reactions to different activities and situations.?Nancy Schimmel, formerly at San Mateo County Library, CA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

A happy, colorful book about a man and woman dreaming of their soon-to-be-born adopted baby, receiving the news of her birth, and flying to the ``faraway place'' where they meet their child. Based on Katz's experience adopting a Central American infant and bright with mixed-media illustrations suggestive of folk art, this is a book for adults to use with children who were adopted in similar circumstances. The message is reassuring: ``Forever and always we will be your mommy and daddy. Forever and always you will be our child.'' The birth mother is gently described as another lady in whose tummy ``you grew like a flower,'' but who ``wasn't able to take care of you, so Mommy and Daddy came to adopt you and bring you home.'' The baby has dark hair like the mother's and dark eyes like both parents' but with duskier skin than either. As in Jamie Lee Curtis and Laura Cornell's Tell Me Again About the Night I Was Born (1996), both text and pictures are suffused with anticipation and joyful welcome at the baby's arrival. (Picture book. 3-7) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Karen Katz has written and illustrated many books for children, including The Colors of Us, Can You Say Peace, My First Ramadan, Counting Kisses and Where is Baby’s Belly Button. Long inspired by folk art from around the world, she was inspired to write Over the Moon, her first book, when she and her husband adopted their daughter from Guatemala, and she wanted to tell the story of welcoming Lena into their lives. Katz loves to paint and experiment with texture, color, collage and pattern. Besides an author and illustrator, she has been a costume designer, quilt maker, fabric artist and graphic designer. Katz and her family divide their time between New York City and Saugerties, New York.