Owl Moon

Written by Jane Yolen
Illustrated by John Schoenherr

I'll put it simply: I LOVE THIS BOOK.  Volunteering in an elementary school classroom, I randomly pulled Owl Moon out of a basket and read it to a child.  When the kids rotated stations and I had a new child to read with, I read it again.  And again.

Owl Moon is a charming story of a young girl's first time "owling" with her father.  Long past the girl's bedtime, the two walk into the forest, their way lit only by the brightness of the moon.  As the duo trudges through "snow whiter than milk in a cereal bowl," the girl uses rich metaphors and similes to describe the scenery and emotions of their excursion.  Even though the girl has never searched for owls with her father before, she knows the rules of owling and follows them exactly.  She knows that she must be quiet, and she must be brave despite the cold and darkness.  Her father calls into the dark woods, listening for a response: "Whoo-whoo-who-who-whooooooo."  Anticipation grows, but they hear nothing.  Finally, when the father calls again, they hear an owl call back, far in the distance.  Her father continues to call, following the sound and moving ever closer to the owl.  The owl swoops overhead and lands on a nearby branch, and the girl finds herself staring face-to-face with the magnificent creature.  This particular moment is so intense that the girl is unaware of how long she and the owl silently stare at each other.  Finally, it is time to go home, and the girl and her father walk back to their house, peaceful and content with their adventure.

The illustrations of this book are beautiful and fit the story perfectly.  Schoenherr's watercolors do an outstanding job of creating images that fit well with the fine details of the girl's words.  The scenery is realistic, and a fun detail of the illustrations is that the majority of the pages show various animals (birds, a raccoon, a deer, and others) peeking out from behind the dark trees, giving children something to look for on every page.  Schoenherr's two-page spread of the owl, staring at the girl and her father, is so lifelike that any reader can imagine actually being there.  The sight of the owl is enough to make the trip worthwhile for father and daughter, and the illustration of that moment makes reading the book worthwhile for the reader.

I will close saying that I might be a bit biased about this book, since my own father is an avid bird-watcher and I have spent many cold winter days silently walking and searching for birds.  But, regardless of one's personal experiences, I think that this is a great story for readers of all ages.