Book Review: Midnight & Moon

Midnight and Moon
by Kelly Cooper
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A beautifully illustrated book about a horse that can't hear and a little girl who can't speak. I love how the disabilities are shown as being difficult but not wholly prohibitive of keeping both our girl and horse from having fulfilled lives.

My only reason for not rating this five stars is I think the average 6-year-old or younger might not understand the ending. Or need some help with it. The idea that you might be able to sense someone you have a special connection with is (possibly) going to be foreign to many small children. If they have been taught any sort of religion it might be easier for them to relate; but those who have not had a religion or spiritualism as a part of their life yet may just need to ask some questions and talk it out with an adult. I would encourage anyone reading this to a little one for the first time to consider how the child reacts and if they maybe need to ask how the little one feels at the end of the story; or if they want to talk about how the girl and horse could sense one another.

I really enjoyed the overall rhythm of Midnight and Moon. The subject matter is softer, and the illustrations are wonderfully beautiful and a bit soft themselves, this makes for a good bedtime reading story. However, Kelly Cooper's book is a bit long for the average bedtime story. So you want to negotiate it as two stories instead of one. Although it's not near as long as Seuss so maybe some parents will find it a reprieve.

Overall this is a gorgeous book that I would happily gift to any young child; but especially to one who has their own disability that they may need help with. A wonderful reminder that your disability makes you special and might actually give you special powers that others lack. Perspective is everything.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.


Follow me on Goodreads