Ladder to the Moon

Gr 3—5—Inspired by Georgia O'Keeffe's painting Ladder to the Moon and her mother's gift for storytelling, the author (Barak Obama's half sister) weaves a tale that introduces her daughter to her grandmother's concern for others and her cultural heritage. After Suhaila asks, "What was Grandma Annie like?" the woman descends a ladder outside her window and invites the child to climb to the Moon with her and listen to the songs of the world's peoples, taste their troubles, feel their faith, and see her connection to them. Together they invite all those in need to climb to the Moon, experience its healing light, and work together to make the world a better place. The full-spread, stunning illustrations, executed in acrylic and digitally manipulated, most often appear on backgrounds of varying shades of blue. Grandmother and child are shown in a warm embrace on the cover, and the woman is rendered larger-than-life throughout, as if her body could match her heart and wrap itself "around the whole world." This is a complex story that encompasses natural disasters and war, as well as major religious and cultural traditions. Morales depicts different kinds of worship, different ethnic groups telling their stories around a fire, and even a creation myth. Author and illustrator explanations in lengthy notes and on an accompanying CD are helpful, but readers will surely need additional discussion if they are to grasp the story's full import and discover, like Suhaila, their own responsibilities as citizens of the world.—Marianne Saccardi, formerly at Norwalk Community College, CT