Children'sBooks

Or... a young person's guide to moonbooks

This page, created by Andrew Martin, is dedicated to a listing of Children's Books which involve the moon or use the moon as a setting or is about the moon.

Some books are better than others in presenting the topic of the moon to children. Being children's books there is typically an element of fiction, but there are some which are less fiction than others. Some books listed use the moon as a simple plot device. While others use the moon as the setting. This list is not complete so please add to it (please add only books you have read). Comments are also welcome by using the discussion tab as to which books are better than others.

The books are listed with the title first followed by the author(s) and any illustrator(s). Next comes the publisher (location if known is before the publisher's name) and the year of publication. Finally each listing contains its ISBN and any notes about the book.

If you have comments about any of these books please use the "Edit this Page" button at top to get into the edit mode and add your comment (and name) after the book's entry. And lets rate them with stars (maybe we should use Moons) with 1 horribly bad and 5 gloriously good! Feel free to add your rating even if the book you read has been rated by Andrew or someone else. - tychocrater Sep 5, 2008

Of course, if you decide to buy any you can use the LPOD Amazon affiliate page and LPOD will earn a huge commission of about 5%! - tychocrater Sep 5, 2008

Non-Fiction

Awesome Space: Planets and Their Moons by John Farndon. Brookfield, CT: Copper Beech Books, 2001. ISBN 0761322507. A general fact book about the planets which includes a chapter about the moon. Grades 1-2. Rating: 4 stars - AndrewMartinSFO
Essential Science: Earth, Moon & Sun by Peter Riley. North Mankato, MN: Smart Apple Media, 2008. ISBN 9781599200255. A basic space science book which includes three chapters dealing with the moon. Grades 4-8. Rating: 4 stars - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 10, 2008
Library of the Universe: The Earth's Moon by Isaac Asimov. Milwaukee, WI: Gareth Stevens, 1988. ISBN 1555323820. A well presented book on the moon. Great for older children (10 years). Filled with lots of moon facts and has a glossary of terms. Rating: 5 stars - AndrewMartinSFO
Library of Why: Why Does the Moon Change Its Shape? by Patricia J Murphy. New York, NY: The Rosen Publishing Group, 2004. ISBN 0823962342. A book on the moon for 1st graders. There is a faux paux about having flashlights when going out at night to look at the moon, other than that its great fact book. Rating: 4 stars - AndrewMartinSFO
Man Walks on the Moon by John Malam. North Mankato, MN: Smart Apple Media, 2004. ISBN 1583404074. Part of the Dates with History series. This one chronicles man's flight to the moon. For ages 8-12. Rating: 5 stars - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 10, 2008
Mission Control, This is Apollo (The Story of the First Voyage to the Moon) by Andrew Chaikin with Victoria Kohl and Allen Bean. New York, NY: Viking, 2009. ISBN 9780670011568. A great book for children 12 years or older on the complete Apollo missions. Each chapter is dedicated to each mission and briefly goes over the history of each. Rating: 8 - AndrewMartinSFO
Moon by Dana Meachen Rau. Minneapolis, MN: Compass Point Books, 2003. ISBN 0756504384. A basic science book on the moon. For ages 8-12. Rating: 4 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 17, 2008
Moon by Melanie Mitchell. Minneapolis, MN: Lerner Publications, 2004. ISBN 0822501880. A simple intro to the moon. Good for grades 1-3. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 17, 2008
Moon Flights by Dennis B Fradin. Chicago, IL: Childrens Press, 1985. ISBN 0516019406. Describes man's first landing on the moon, later moon walks in Project Apollo, and the importance of these missions to our exploration of space. Good for grades 1-3. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 17, 2008
Reaching for the Moon by Buzz Aldrin, illus. by Wendell Minor. HarperCollins, 2005. ISBN 0060554452. Autobiography of Buzz Aldrin's life up to his walking on the moon. Includes a time line of important flight and space events. Ages 6-9. Rating: 5 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 8, 2008
Science Project Ideas about the Moon by Robert Gardner. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow Publishers, 1997. Filled with lots of facts on the moon and few experiments dealing with astronomy (some require adult assistance). Ages 10 and up. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 18, 2008
Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon by Catherine Thimmesh. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 2006. ISBN 0618507574. A great fact book on the people it took to get Apollo 11 off the ground. This books is for older children (grades 5 and up). Rating: 4 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 11, 2008
The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins by Bea Uusma Schyffert. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books, 2003. ISBN 08118400077. This book is filled with lots of Apollo 11 facts. Ages 10 and up. Rating: 5 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 8, 2008
The Moon by Ian Graham. North Mankato, MN: Smart Apple Media, 2008. ISBN 9781599200705. Part of the Discovering Space series. A basic book on the moon for ages 8-12. Rating: 4 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 10, 2008
The Moon by Lydia Carlin. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc., 2007. ISBN 0545007321. Part of the Science Vocabular Readers series by Scholastic. Great for early readers. Rating: 4 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 24, 2008
The Moon by Seymour Simon. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster Books, 2003. ISBN 0689835639. A nice overview of the moon from the perspective of the moon landings. It does call the maria flatlands vs. maria though. For older children (9-10 years). Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 17, 2008
The Moon Seems to Change by Franklyn M. Branley, illus. by Barbara and Ed Emberley. New York, NY: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1987. ISBN 0690045832. A book for ages 6-9 on the phases of the moon. Rating: 4 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 18, 2008

The Moon and How to Observe It (Astronomers' Observing Guides) by Peter Grego..Springer..The Moon and How to Observe It is a mine of information for all levels of amateur observers, from the beginner to the experienced. Published by ISBN-13: 978-1852337483 / ISBN-10: 1852337486 Rating 5 stars.

Craters of the Near Side Moon by John Moore, will certainly suit both the amateur and professional astronomer alike: as a reference tool of details about craters (whether through observations made, planned, of for general interest); ISBN-10: 1497324440 ISBN-13: 978-1497324442Discover the Moon 1st Edition by Jean Lacroux (Author), Christian Legrand (Author), Christopher Sutcliffe (Translator) The Maps printed on the book's front and back flaps show the whole Moon with sites as seen through a refractor, through a Newtonian reflector, or, when turned upside-down, through binoculars. Jean Lacroux has been a columnist for the French astronomy magazine Ciel et Espace for 25 years. He has published four successful amateur astronomy books in French. Christian Legrand is an engineer and amateur astronomer, who has been a passionate lunar observer since the Apollo missions.ISBN -13: 978-0521535557 ISBN-10: 0521535557

What's Hot on the Moon Tonight? November 21, 2014Moonscape Publishing, LLC; by Andrew Planck A Day by Day Guide to the Moon ISBN-10: 099087690X ISBN-13: 978-0990876908

Worlds Beyond: Earth and the Moon by Ron Miller, photos by Nasa. Brookfield, CT: 21st Century, 2003. ISBN 0761323589. Considered to be good example of a moonbook for children. See LPOD.

Fiction

Apollo calls Soyuz by Albert Weinberg, 1973 (the adventures of Canadian airforce pilot Dan Cooper and his friend Kid Dereika). In this album, Dan Cooper and Kid Dereika fly to the moon, to discover a marooned Russian crew on the lunar surface.- DannyCaes Sep 20, 2008
Destination Moon by Herge. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Co., 1953. ISBN 0316358452. The comic strip adventures of Tintin where he journeys to the moon. Rating: 1 star. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 18, 2008
Doctor Dolittle in the moon by Hugh Lofting, Illustrated by Hugh Lofting. Jonathan Cape,London. first published 1929. One in a series of adventures of Doctor Dolittle documenting his visit to the moon. The mode of transportation is on the back of a giant moth called Jamaro Bumblelily. no ISBN access the text : Available in a New Edition ,1992, Random House, London. EAN: 9780099880608 - astrokat Jul 19, 2010
Doctor Dolittles' Return by Hugh Lofting. ill. Hugh Lofting. 1933 Cape, London. no ISBN- astrokat Jul 19, 2010wikipedia entry
Magic Tree House #8: Midnight on the Moon by Mary Pope Osborne, illus. by Sal Murdocca. New York: Random House, 1996. ISBN 0679863745. Part of the continuing adventures of Jack and Annie where they travel to a near future moon base. They actually drive a Lunar Rover in this one. There are a couple of errors in it. For children 6-9. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO
Moonwake: The Lunar Frontier by Anne & Paul Spudis. Xlibris Corp, 2006. ISBN 1425700918. Lunar based fiction for older children. Considered to be an accurate read. See LPOD Book Lists
The Magic School Bus: Takes a Moonwalk by Joanna Cole, illus. by Bruce Degen and Carolyn Bracken. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc., 2004. ISBN 0439684005. Part of the Scholastic Reader level 2. Ms. Frizzle takes the Bus to the moon. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 24, 2008

Picture Books

Anansi the Spider- a tale from the Ashanti by Gerald Mcdermott. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Co., 1972. ISBN 080500310X (hardcover). The folktale from Ghana on how the moon got up in the sky. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO
And If the Moon Could Talk by Kate Banks, illus. by Georg Hallensleben. New York, NY: Frances Foster Books, 1998. ISBN 0374302995. A good bedtime book for ages 3-5. Rating: 2 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 17, 2008
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, illus. by Clement Hurd. Haper & Row, 1947 (Boardbook 1991). ISBN 0694003611 (boardbook). A classic early child boardbook. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 6, 2008 Author website - http://margaretwisebrown.com/Contact.html
Happy Birthday, Moon by Frank Asch. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books, 1982. ISBN 0689835434. The adventures of Moonbear as he gives the moon a birthday gift. Rating: 2 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 11, 2008
If You Decide to Go to the Moon by Faith McNulty, illus. by Steven Kellogg. New York, NY: Scholastic Press, 2005. ISBN 0590483595. A child's prespective of going to the moon. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 11, 2008
Kate, the Cat and the Moon by David Almon and Stephen Lambert. New York, NY: Doubleday Book, 2004. ISBN 0385746911. A book about a girl's night time adventures after she turns into a cat. Rating: 2 stars. Ages: 4-8. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 18, 2008
Many Moons by James Thurber, illus. by Louis Slobodkin. New York, NY: Harcourt, 1943. ISBN 0152518738. A story about a princess and her idea of how far and what the moon is made of. Rating: 2 - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 8, 2008
Max Goes to the Moon by Jeffrey Bennett, illus. by Alan Okamoto. Boulder,CO: Big Kid Science, 2003. ISBN 0972181903. - See the LPOD review of this book. Rating: 5 stars! - tychocrater Sep 5, 2008
Mooncake by Franks Asch. New York, NY: Aladdin Paperbacks, 1999. ISBN 0689835175. The continuing adventures of Moonbear as he pretends to travel to the moon. Rating: 2 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO
Moongame by Frank Asch. New York, NY: Aladdin Paperbacks, 1999. ISBN 0689835183. The continuing adventures of Moonbear as he plays a game of hide and seek with the moon. Rating: 2 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO
Moon Man by Tomi Ungerer. New York, NY: Delcorte Press, 1931. ISBN 0385304293. A cute story about the man in the moon and his adventures on Earth. Rating: 2 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 18, 2008
New Moon by Pegi Deitz Shea, illus. by Cathryn Falwell. Honesdale, PA: Boyds Mills Press, 1996. ISBN 156397410X. A cute story dealing with the phases of the moon. Rating: 4 stars.- AndrewMartinSFO
On the Moon by Anna Milbourne, illus. by Benji Davies, designed by Laura Fearn. London, England: Usborne Publishing, 2004. No ISBN. A really basic book on conditions astronauts faced on the moon. For ages 4-7. Rating: 5 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 10, 2008
Possum's Harvest Moon by and illus. by Anne Hunter. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1996. ISBN 0395735750. A cute book about a Harvest Moon party. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO
Tambourine Moon by Joy Jones, illus. by Terry Widener. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books, 1999. A story about how a grandpa found grandma. Ages: 4-8. Rating: 2 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO Sep 18, 2008
The Moon by Robert Louis Stevenson, illus. by Tracey Campbell Pearson. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006. ISBN 0374350469. This is an illustrated version of Robert Louis Stevenson's famous poem. Rating: 2 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO
The Moon and You by E.C. Krupp, Illus. by Robin Rector Krupp. HarperTrophy, 2000. ISBN 06888178189. Considered to be good example of a moonbook for children. Age- 4 to 8. See LPOD.
The Moon Came Down on Milk St. by Jean Gralley. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Co., 2004. ISBN 0805072667. A rather silly book about the moon falling to the earth. Rating: 1 star. - AndrewMartinSFO
The Moon Might be Milk by Lisa Shulman, illus. by Will Hillenbrand. New York: Dutton Children's Books, 2007. ISBN 05245476474. Its about a child who questions what the moon is made of. This book has a recipe for moon sugar cookies. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO
Moon Rope- A Peruvian Folktale by Lois Ehlert, translated in spanish by Amy Prince. New York City, New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1992. ISBN 0152553436. This folk tale is about a mole and fox who want to travel to the moon on a rope. It explains the Fox in the Moon. This book is bilingual. Rating: 3 stars. - AndrewMartinSFO
When the Moon Fell Down by Linda Smith, illus. by Kathryn Brown. HarperCollins, 2001. ISBN 0060283017. A rather silly tale of the man in the moon and a cow. Rating: 1 star. - AndrewMartinSFO
You Will Go To The Moon by Mae and Ira Freeman, Illustrated by Robert Patterson, 1959: Age around 6 years. A precient depiction?... Silly me - I believed it!- astrokat Jul 27, 2010sample pages

See also John Sisson's extraordinary website Dreams of Space (which is a cornucopia of spacebooks and moonbooks for youngsters!).- DannyCaes Sep 20, 2008

Take also a look at the MoonWiki's page Lunar Maps, which shows the extraordinary history of lunar cartography (moonmaps and moonglobes). Many books for youngsters (with lunar maps in them) are included!- DannyCaes Sep 6, 2008

Additional Information

Many youngsters see curious Pareidolia in the Full Moon's disc. The monthly observable Man in the Moon is perhaps the most well-known example of moon-related Pareidolia. When looking through telescopes, young observers may notice much more Pareidolia on the moon's cratered surface. It would be interesting to create a catalog of these telescopically observable Pareidolia!- DannyCaes Sep 13, 2008
 

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