Book Review: Many Moons

When you become a dad you think a few things, how can i get my kid to fall asleep? How can i get my kid to grow up to know the difference between knowledge and intelligence? How can I work James Thurber into the bedtime story repertoire? Fortunately, there is one single answer to all of those questions.

Many Moons

by James Thurber
Illustrations by: Louis Slobodkin

My wife picked up a copy of Many Moons at our local Reno Sundance Bookstore a few weeks ago. I know what you’re thinking, but Thurber isn’t the first children’s book author who was also a noteworthy Playboy Magazine contributor, [Shel Silverstein]. Thurber is one of my favorite short story writers, so I was stoked to be able to share his wry ironic style with my son.

Many Moons is a classic fairytale style story of a king, the princess Lenore, a magician, a mathematician, a wizard and the Jester, who turns out to be wiser than them all. In the story, the Princess Lenore has fallen in from a surfeit of raspberry tarts, a common problem every child can relate to. She tells her father, The King, that she must have the moon and she will be well. Unrealistic demands is also something that should seem familiar to most kids.

Then comes the problem of how the moon can be delivered to her. The Wizzard, Magician and Mathematician all have different calculations for the size and distance of the actual moon and why it cannot be gotten. The Jester, finds a way and delivers it to her and she is well again and The King is happy.

Then comes the problem of how to keep the Princess Lenore from seeing the moon rise the next night and realizing that she was fooled and becoming ill again. The three “wise men” come up with ways to physically shield the kingdom, none of which meet with the Kings satisfaction. Again, the Jester comes to the rescue and Lenore is well.

The book takes 20 minutes or so to read, the Caldecott Medal illustrations are great and the text is engaging for both the parent and the child. Get Many Moons, think about why the jester is so smart and the difference between learned and smart and you’ll be in the catbird seat.

-Mike