Owl Moon
Jane Yolen
When browsing the Scholastic Book Fair at school earlier this month I was looking for the right book for each of my grandchildren. My last selection was for one-year-old little Phoebe.I had a book in hand by one of my beloved authors. At first I thought that she was young for the story but after circling the book fair another time, I could not find one better. There was something special here, just for her. I wrapped my arms around the book and thought... "She will look at beauty before she knows the story. She will see the shining of the moon, the snow tracks on the path, the cold blue night, the branches of big trees, the little girl and her pa. Then when she is older and hears the story she will hear the beauty. She will hear how the father takes his daughter on a special hike and shows her how to find owls in the night. She will learn with the daughter about silence, listening, and watching. She will feel the mysterious beauty of family moments and a father's love - all when the time comes. But if I don't buy it for her now, I might forget later!" With this firm conclusion I stepped over to the cashier.
Coincidentally, my latest issue of The Horn Book Magazine arrived in the mail this week and inside was an article by Jane Yolen on the writing of this very book. She describes how authors have choices of narrative style, and she presents some variations of the story in the form of a poem, a rap, a sonnet, and a condensed unrhymed poem. Since the story is semi-autobiographical (the girl is her daughter and pa is her husband) she was clear what she wanted to say. Since she is a seasoned author of children's books she could easily write in rhyme. She says in this case she was lucky. She chose rightly. The longer single poem exceeds the condensed version because the latter "misses the breathlessness of the child, the centered metaphors of her experience, and the journey that the longer single poems allows the young reader to make." The Horn Book Magazine, January/February 2014.
