Mae and the Moon: Book Review

When we aren’t exploring the outdoors we enjoy reading about it and letting our imaginations run wild. As a result I’m always on the hunt for nature-inspired children’s books. Sometimes I discover these wonderful books at our local library or through conversations with friends but every so often I scour the internet for hidden jewels. I’m particularly fond of Canadian authors and illustrators (because I’m Canadian) and even more so of authors and illustrators from British Columbia (my home province), so when I find a nature-inspired children’s book that fulfills all these preferences (and more!) I get rather giddy. This is exactly how I felt when I discovered Mae and the Moon written and illustrated by Jami Gigot.

Mae and the Moon is a story about a young girl named Mae who is captivated by the night sky and the moon. She is always watching the moon and playing games with it but one night the moon disappears completely…

The first time my children and I read this book together we were captivated by the sweet story and the beautiful illustrations. The setting of the book is night time, when the moon and stars are out. The beautiful moon, which changes shape with each flip of the page (reflecting the phases of the moon), shines through the darkness of each image casting beautiful moon shadows throughout. The images are magical. When the moon is gone (new moon) it’s loss is keenly felt by all. However, Mae isn’t afraid. She’s a brave adventurer and my children smiled at her ingenuity to find the moon in her Moon Chaser 5. Mae and the Moon is a lovely bedtime story but even more it’s a gentle way to introduce children to the wonders of the moon. The back of the book is even equipped with a handy moon phase diagram that can be used to identify the moon phases throughout the story or in the night sky!

Jami Gigot hails from Vancouver, BC and Mae and the Moon is her first picture book! When I asked Jami what inspired her books she responded:

“The book was inspired by my daughter Mae. When she was very small we would play a game where we would try and spot the moon. She was exceptionally good at it and one time said to me that she thought the moon was following us. I wrote a poem called The Moon is Following Me shortly thereafter which I drew a few storyboards for and sent to a handful of publishers. The poem developed into a story after advice from my publisher and became Mae and the Moon!”

Jami’s next book titled ‘Seb and the Sun’ is coming out in the Spring of 2018 and I can hardly wait to read it with my children. In the meantime Jami has been so kind to send me a signed hardcover copy of her book to giveaway to one of my readers. Thank you Jami!

The giveaway: One lucky person can win a signed hardcover copy of Mae and the Moon by leaving a comment at the end of this post. If you share this giveaway with your friends on social media post a second comment below stating “I shared this post on…(Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc.)!” for a second entry.

The giveaway will close on Sunday, February 5, 2017 at midnight. Good luck!