The Man in the Moon

MiM wants to help the children afraid of the dark. Colorful, interesting, imaginative characters. wordy.

Beautiful artwork, and the story almost brought a tear to my eye. I'm looking forward to experiencing the rest of the series.

MiM is fortunate that he has Nightlight to watch and protect him from the evil Pitch after his parents are captured while sailing towards Earth on their ship, the Moon Clipper. After the Clipper turns into the Earths moon, the MiM grows into a smart man who takes the position of Man in the Moon.

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Awesome Illustrations and a tragic story with a heart warming ending.

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A little boy living in space somewhere was a happy child whose dad sang him the same song every night before bed. When a battle of shooting stars began, he was lead on a quest that would change him forever. This Quest taught him that he could protect childhood everywhere and he became the man in

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the moon.

Williamjoyce.com
shows a lot of his illustrations and has frequent updates on what he is up to now

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William Joyce went out to redefine our notable childhood heroes when he first started making The Guardians of Childhood series, about a group of heroes from folklore who devote themselves to protecting children, especially from bad dreams. They include such notables as Santa Claus, the Easter

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Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, Mother Goose, the Sandman, among others. However, this group of fairytale avengers is assembled by none other than the Man in the Moon, who acts generally in the background, unseen by many (though his fortress is seen by all).

In this volume, the chronologically first, and first published picture book in the series, we learn the origin of the Man in the Moon (or MiM). Taking the reader back to the Golden Age, Joyce goes about telling the reader about MiM’s childhood, a story retold from a different perspective in the initial novel of the series, Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King), and how he grew up to become the first protector of terrestrial childhood.

I thought the series was sweet, and quirky enough (via Joyce’s unique illustrations and original concepts) to merit reading, especially to small children, who seem, otherwise, to be stuck in a barrage of poorly drawn or excessively minimalist books (don’t get me wrong, some of these books are great). It’s good to be able to introduce children to colorful pictures, a few big words, and some very terse, yet flowing storytelling. The story is engaging enough for adults as well as children, though it be a picture book.

If you’re going to start reading the Guardians of Childhood series, I believe that this book, while of a different format than many of the others, should be treated as part of the series (namely, the first part), and should be read before delving into the more text-heavy (but not too heavy) tomes.

Though it’s been done countless times before, Joyce breathes new, fresh life into the heroes of childhood folklore.

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Knowing how long William Joyce worked on this book makes me want to like it more than I do, but it just doesn't overwhelm me. It's handsomely designed and some of the illustrations are stunning but the story leaves me unimpressed.

Gorgeous illustrations. We are looking forward to reading the chapter books in the Guardians series...

Charming. That's the simplest, most appropriate word to describe The Man in the Moon, the first offering from William Joyce and his The Guardians of Childhood series of picture books and chapter books. It's a simple little story about how MiM, the Man in the Moon, came to live in the moon. I could

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really make this review all spoilery, but since the book is so short (it is a picture book, after all), I'll just leave it at impressions. Joyce creates a world for MiM that is both beautiful and slightly dark, breathing new life into some of our favorite early childhood fairy tales (here's a hint: the next book that will be available is a chapter book titled Nicholas St. North). Joyce's art has its usual flair and distinctive look, and it really adds to the overall feel of the story. I'm glad that I picked this up and will be looking forward to the rest of the series!

I know this is a short review, but really, you should just pick up The Man in the Moon and discover its joy for yourself.

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I love anything written by William Joyce, and "Man in the Moon" is no exception. The first thing I love about this book is the fantastical world that Joyce created with this series, and this book in particular. This book is the first in a series of all the traditional childhood fantasy characters.

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The blockbuster type story that this book uses is not one used very often used in children's books. Joyce was able to fit a novel's worth of action in a small children's book. Another thing that I liked about this book was the illustrations. They were done so well, and enhanced the story. They were created with software usually reserved for animated cartoons, but also had a hand drawn feel. For example, on one page there is a picture on Mim (the man in the moon) who looks like a cherub character out of a Pixar movie. On the next page there is a picture of Pitch Black (the boogeyman) drawn harshly with a charcoal medium. The contrast between images really completes the story. Finally, I love Joyce's writing. The vocabulary he uses pushes children, but does not overwhelm them. For example, words like "scuttle" and "plundering" but they are used in a context where it is understandable, and does not distract from the story. The big message in this book is that in good versus evil, good will always win.

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A wonderful origin story about the Man In the Moon. A delight for all ages.

A wonderful origin story about the Man In the Moon. A delight for all ages.

A wonderful origin story about the Man In the Moon. A delight for all ages.

A wonderful origin story about the Man In the Moon. A delight for all ages.

Excellent story and beautiful, large, full color illustrations. I love this author so far and the Guardians of Childhood series for children. Tells the story of the Nightmare King and how the man in the moon came to be.

This is the story of how the Man in the Moon came to be. It takes us on a journey, starting with the Moon Clipper. We meet Nightlight who protects MIM from nightmares. Pitch, the Kind of Nightmares, has other ideas for MIM. Pitch wants him to be the Prince of Nightmares. The story takes a

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circuitous route from the defeat of Pitch to MIM landing on Earth's moon. His parent turn into a constellation and Nightlight became shooting stars. This is where the book goes a bit off the rails. We learn how MIM grows up to be the Man in the Moon. We also learn about the beginnings of Santa Clause, the Easter Bunny, Mother Goose and more. Finally we learn how the moon began to shine. This story is a bit too convoluted for me. On the plus side, the illustrations are stunning.

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A fun book, with lovely illustrations.