Bright Sky, Starry City & Max and the Tag-Along Moon

A late-night visit to the library inspires Julie and Emma to read two books about the night sky. Author and illustrator Floyd Cooper drops in for a visit and shares one of his stories. Plus, astronomer Annette S. Lee teaches us about the Lakota/Dakota Star Map. Learn more about Native Skywatchers here. And Annette has her own book for children, Forever Sky.

Get Bright Sky, Starry City: Amazon | Bookshop.org | Find it at your library

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Get Max and the Tag-Along Moon: Amazon | Bookshop.org | Find it at your library

max — “Max and the Tag-Along Moon” written and illustrated by Floyd Cooper. Copyright © 2015. Used with permission of Puffin Books, Penguin Random House. All rights reserved.

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PICTURE THIS: MORE FROM THE ILLUSTRATOR

Floyd Cooper and Aimee Sicuro both got into illustration at an early age!

“I started drawing at an early age, 3 years old actually. I drew all over the house!” -- Floyd Cooper, author and illustrator of Max and the Tag-Along Moon

“When I was in the sixth grade my teacher Miss Byrnes had all her students keep a daily journal. While writing about my life as a sixth grader, I would include a drawing at the bottom of the page that expressed what I had written that day. At the end of the year she wrote me a long letter in that same journal suggesting that "illustration was my calling." This was the first time anyone had pointed out that illustration was an actual career. It was such an exciting idea that I applied and was accepted to a vocational arts highschool and took commercial art classes to prepare a portfolio for college where I majored in illustration.” -- Aimee Sicuro, illustrator of Bright Sky, Starry City

THIS WEEK’S ACTIVITY: DRAW THE NIGHT SKY

When you look up at the night sky, what do you see? Draw a picture of it, and send it to us!

THE BACKSTORY

Both authors found inspiration for these books in their own childhoods.

“When I was a child in India, on clear nights, we could see the Milky Way. Over the years, I’ve been sad to see bright lights wash away the stars in every place I’ve ever lived. I wanted to share with children the joy of seeing the stars. I hope my book will get kids thinking about light pollution in their communities and spark a passion in them for the wonders of the night sky.” -- Uma Krishnaswami, author of Bright Sky, Starry City

"I remember my Dad giving us a ride in his taxi cab after he'd put in a good day's work, something he did quite regularly. We loved bouncing around in the back seat as we went for ice cream. My view from the back seat was of the sky. As tree tops and power lines would whiz by, the moon was there. Even when we turned the corner the moon was still there. When we drove past the gas station, there was that moon. When we crossed the train tracks and headed home, that moon, ever there!" -- Floyd Cooper, author and illustrator of Max and the Tag-Along Moon