Bright Sky, Starry City

April 6, 2015
Phoebe and her father love astronomy, but “city lights always turned the night sky gray and dull,” and their chances of spying Mars and Saturn one particular night aren’t promising. After a day spent recreating the solar system in chalk on the sidewalk outside her father’s store, which sells telescopes and other astronomical equipment, Phoebe wishes “for all the bright lights to disappear.” Instead, she gets a rainstorm that drives them indoors. When the storm knocks out the power, however, Phoebe and her fellow residents are treated to a vibrant celestial light show, including glimpses of Mars, Saturn, and the Milky Way. While the story carries an unmistakable message about light pollution (one of several relevant topics examined in an appended section), Krishnaswami’s (The Happiest Tree) elegant, understated writing focuses more on Phoebe’s hopes, disappointments, and curiosities, as well as her tender relationship with her father. Newcomer Sicuro’s mixed-media illustrations are similarly attentive to the story’s emotions, though her scenes never get dark enough to fully convey the sense of a city by night. Which is, perhaps, kind of the point. Ages 6–9. Author’s agent: Ginger Knowlton, Curtis Brown.

March 15, 2015
A nighttime power outage transforms a young urban sky watcher's frustration to joy.Outside her father's telescope shop, Phoebe chalks the solar system on the sidewalk, looks up at the faint, paltry sky show, and wishes that just once all the bright city lights would go out. A sudden storm grants her wish, and the clouds clear to reveal stars in the hundreds, constellations that she "had only ever seen / in pictures," a rare conjunction of Saturn and Mars, and the pale, gauzy Milky Way. "How deep the night was / and how endless!" Using a mix of pastels, chalks, and collage, Sicuro depicts Phoebe looking, usually, up and marveling at the spangled skies, the connected dots of constellations, and the two easily recognizable planets floating in the vasty deep. Puzzling choices include showing Phoebe peering through a telescope pointed down rather than up and lifting her arms in a final scene to a sky that looks more washed out than on previous pages. Still, views of her, her father, and wonderstruck passersby gazing up past crowded rooftops capture a strong sense of a special, shared moment. Along with a quixotic kvetch about light pollution, the author appends quick descriptions of the solar system, moons, planetary conjunctions, and optical telescopes. A mildly agenda-driven companion to the less-cosmic likes of John Rocco's Blackout (2011) or Jonathan Bean's intimate At Night (2007). (bibliography, glossary) (Picture book. 6-8)

May 1, 2015

Gr 2-5-Phoebe loves everything about the stars. She draws the planets on the sidewalk outside of her dad's store after helping him set up the telescope. Saturn and Mars are going to be visible tonight up in the night sky. But Dad warns her that they might be hard to see, since the city lights "always turned the night sky gray and dull." Phoebe is disappointed and wishes that the lights would go out, just for a while. Sicuro's mixed-media illustrations help children understand the story from the girl's point of view. From her chalk drawings of the planets to the up-close view of Phoebe making her wish, readers are in the moment, hoping that Phoebe will get to see the stars. Several informational pages offer "More About Our Night Sky," including facts about the solar system, telescopes, and light pollution. VERDICT This fictional story will pair nicely with nonfiction titles on the topic, such as Jacqueline Mitton's Zoo in the Sky (1998) and Once Upon a Starry Night (2004, both National Geographic).-Annette Herbert, F. E. Smith Elementary School, Cortland, NY

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