Maya Moon

Book Review:

Maya Moon is a very appealing book about the moon, and why it has different shapes. The story is derived from the Mayan culture, and it is probably a folktale from the Mayan culture as well. The story takes place in the Mayan civilization and is about how Maya Moon decided to change shapes.

It all started when Maya went out at night to shine brightly in the sky, when she returned home she felt tired and wanted to go to sleep in her big comfy bed, but she found a turtle sleeping in her bed. Maya Moon was very tired and she wanted to go to bed, so she woke up turtle and asked her to leave. The next night when Maya Moon returned home feeling tired and wanting to go to bed, she found two turtles sleeping in her bed. The next day she found three turtles in her bed.

Maya Moon asked Chac the rain god to help her by guarding her bed while she was brightening the sky at night. Chac guarded her bed that night and no turtles came. But one time, however, Chac received a message from the four winds, telling him that he must leave because a storm was coming and Chac needed to bring the rain. Chac left, and four turtles went to sleep in Maya Moon's bed. When Maya Moon returned she made the turtles leave. But she was very upset so much that she fell into many pieces. As she gathered her pieces a wonderful idea came to her; every night she would leave a different piece at home to guard the bed. For the first time ever the moon was no more than a silver smile in the dark sky.

The illustrations in this book are very beautiful; they transport the reader back in time, back to the Mayan period. The colors used are predominately dark, yet not gloomy at all. This book would be great in a classroom, especially incorporating it in a lesson about the solar system and the phases of the moon.

 

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