THE ALWAYS MOON

In a pleasant, calming book for sharing at bedtime, Pierson celebrates the constancy of the moon in pure and pretty images: it “mirrors” its own picture in the waters; “shares its beams” on “rocky, rugged mountains”; and spreads a “nighttime light wide over the world.” Through the eyes of a young boy peering out his window, the moon unifies the world. No matter if it is full, a sliver, or hidden, the boy finds comfort in knowing that it is always there, shining down on not only him, but on “huts of native people” and “dwellings of city people in many lands.” Brooks’s soft, blue-hued evening colors capture night moods and enhance the comforting tone of the text. A design element dresses up the lower corner of each spread, adding to the sense of balance that both story and illustrations convey. (Picture book. 4-6)