Synopses & Reviews
Have you ever wanted your very own star?
Wouldn't it be wonderful to have your own star for a nightlight? It is this thought that begins Hopper and Wilson's second adventure. They fill their airplane with lemonade and soar into the night sky. So many stars to choose from! One is too pointy. One is too heavy. Another is too bright! Taking a break on the moon, the two friends look directly above and spot itthe perfect star! As Hopper lays down for a nap, Wilson ventures off on his own, to the dark side of the moon. Yet now he is lost! How can he find his way back to Hopper?
The perfect star, of course. Wilson spots it in the sky and follows it back to his friend. In another deceptively simple story, Maria van Lieshout shows how sometimes the best part of nature is that it's found only in natureand that everything has its proper place . . . be it stars or even best friends, who always belong together.
Review
"Hopper and Wilson, two stitched-up, stuffed toys (an elephant and a mouse), sit on their dock with their pet cactus looking at the stars and decide to bring one home for a night light. . . . Children will drift along with the velvety narration, nodding, eager to join the two buddies up there amid the constellations. . . . Soft watercolors ease readers right into their celestial trip, mapping a starry sky through full-bleed saturations of dark blues and plum purples, dotted with twinkling whites and citrus-y yellows. Paper textures surface occasionally when the watercolors thin out, adding varying depths and a cirrus quality to the outer-space atmosphere. A walk to the dark side of the moon brings an acutely frightening moment for both Wilson and any sensitive reader whos been lost. Luckily, the buddies special star, the one they planned to take home, helps orient the little guy and direct him back to his friend. His tiny, mousy voice, Hoppers huge, comforting hug and all that bruised blackness make their reunion poignant and personal. An amusingly absurd adventure that shines starlight on empathy and friendship."--Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
From the illustrator of the #1 smash hit The Day the Crayons Quit comes an imaginative tale of friendship in a world where what makes us different isn't nearly as important as what makes us the same.
When a boy discovers a single-propeller airplane in his closet, he does what any young adventurer would do: He flies it into outer space! Millions of miles from Earth, the plane begins to sputter and quake, its fuel tank on empty. The boy executes a daring landing on the moon . . . but theres no telling what kind of slimy, slithering, tentacled, fangtoothed monsters lurk in the darkness! (Plus, its dark and lonely out there.) Coincidentally, engine trouble has stranded a young Martian on the other side of the moon, and hes just as frightened and alone. Martian, Earthlingits all the same when youre in need of a friend.
About the Author
Oliver Jeffers (www.oliverjeffersworld.com) makes art and tells stories. His books include
How to Catch a Star; Lost and Found, which was the recipient of the prestigious Nestle Childrens Book Prize Gold Award in the U.K. and was later adapted into an award-winning animated film;
The Way Back Home; The Incredible Book Eating Boy; The Great Paper Caper; The Heart and the Bottle, which was made into a highly acclaimed iPad application narrated by Helena Bonham Carter;
Up and Down,
the
New York Times bestselling
Stuck;
The Hueys in the New Sweater,
a
New York Times Best Illustrated Book of the Year; and
This Moose Belongs to Me,
a
New York Times bestseller. Originally from Belfast, Northern Ireland, Oliver now lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.