Stars Above Us - Hardcover

Geoffrey Norman's articles have appeared in Outside, Esquire, Men's Journal, National Geographic, and Sports Illustrated, and he is currently editor-at-large for Forbes FYI. His mysteries have earned him an Edgar Award.

Kindergarten-Grade 3—Amanda is afraid of the dark, so her father takes her outside one night to look up at the stars. Still, her room is dark and scary, so Daddy brings home paper and paint to make stars that glow in the dark and pastes them on her ceiling. When he goes away, he tells her that he will be able to see the North Star just as she can. He gives her a puppy called Bear, another name for the Big Dipper. Only when he calls from his military post on the other side of the world do readers understand that Amanda's fear of the dark masks a deeper fear for his safety. An unspecified length of time passes, Bear grows, and the family is reunited at last at the airport. Realistic watercolor illustrations, many of them dark and still, are strangely comforting. This quiet, hopeful book speaks especially to the children of military personnel serving abroad, though it will resonate with any child separated from a parent.—Mary Jean Smith, Southside Elementary School, Lebanon, TN END