Review: Staircase to the Moon

Young Rosie is watching the moon rise over the mudflats with her family when she mentions she wants climb the staircase to the moon. What staircase to the moon? Well, for several months of the year over Roebuck Bay in the Kimberley town of Broome, the rising moon shines over the mudflats of a very low tide, creating a beautiful, ladder-like illusion.

Inspired by this phenomenon, local author Houston has penned a tale of a little girl who climbs the staircase to the moon with her grandfather, who, like the most imaginative of children, also believes in a little magic.

But when Rosie wakes in the morning, was her moon adventure only a dream?

What I like most about this book is the journeying through the landscapes of far northern WA. Through the mangroves, franjipani and giant boab trees, even through a hoard of blood-sucking mozzies . . . a wonderful way to visit an entirely other world for most Australian children.

Despite a warm and magical tale, the illustrations in this book do let it down. Although the landscape illustrations are charming, the drawings of people are just too amateur. More professional illustrations would take this story to a whole new level.

Title: Staircase to the Moon

Author/Illustrator: Bronwyn Houston

Publisher: Magabala Books, $19.95

Publication Date: April 2011

ISBN: 9781921248290

Format: Soft cover

For ages: 3 - 8

Type: Picture Book