A year ago, a book came out. Well a lot came out, but I did not learn of this particular book until a little over a year later. The Moon Tonight: Our Moon’s Journey Around the Earth by Jung Chang-hoon is about the moon. But not just “the facts” or even everything about the moon. The author focuses on the waxing and waning of the moon. We follow the moon’s cycles. The text is older, though it is a picture book, therefore the age it is aimed at might be turned off by the format. However, since I read it via an online reader’s copy, I am not sure of the exact dimensions.
The text has two parts. The first is a story-like section that talks about the moon and how things look (half moon, crescent, full, new, etc). This is highlighted by story-book-like illustrations by Jang Ho. Of course, they illustrate the second part as well. Near the bottom of some pages several panels are set up giving more information, but in a slightly easier way to see, but also at the older reader level. The month of the moon, the history and even a bit about the tides all come into play.
It is the artwork that can really make this or not for the reader. They are busy, detailed, but not overly crowded. The use of shadows and light mark most of the images. The lack of transitional use of colors gives the book an artistic look, and a more mature look to things. They are illustrations that are realistic but not as if they were photographic imagery. The entire book has a somber, soft feeling, but also has a “hard text” concept that makes the words solid, contrasting with the art.