La noche que se cayó la luna

Children's Literature

This traditional Mayan myth is retold in Spanish by the poet Pat Mora. It seems Luna, the moon, is startled by her grandfather's blowgun and rolls out of the sky and into the sea where she breaks into millions of pieces. But her friends, the fishes, help her "collect herself" and they add little found bits they pick up from seashells and in crevices on the ocean floor. Soon Luna is ready to journey skyward again. But she seeks a few patches from her friends who donate a scale or two. Finally, curious, the fishes make a net of themselves and accompany her to the sky where today they twinkle and swim. The original Mayan story featured a weaver moon and a fish who is the Milky Way, so Mora has taken some creative liberties here and has inserted some awkward verse ("Where am I? Where's the sky?/Broken, sad, lost am I") into the otherwise flowing story. Vibrant paintings use colors which bleed on the paper with rainbow-like results. The decorative artwork resembles folk motifs and pattern, each painting striking on its own, but taken as a whole, the illustrations are a less-than-eloquent continuation of the story. Is this a Mayan explanation of why the moon waxes and wanes? Perhaps. Or is it a story of self-reliance, as the opening note suggests, or of the need for true friends, as the text hints? Nonetheless, the book demands a second look for the beautiful artwork, and the enigmatic story will have children looking to the stars with new curiosity. 2000, Groundwood Books/Douglas & McIntyre, $16.95. Ages 4 to 8. Reviewer: Susan Hepler