Review: A Wave of Stars

By Dolores Brown

Illustrated by Sonja Wimmer

Available now from NubeOcho

Review copy

I was attracted to A Wave of Stars due to the arresting cover, with adorable turtle and a seal clutching a merman plush. I am glad I decided to pick it up, because the art is beautiful throughout.

 Sonja Wimmer's art has a softness to it that makes the characters look extra cute. The bright colors are well-suited to a story that partially takes place in the ocean. There are also lots of fun details for young readers to spot, like where the merman plush is on each page as it gets tossed through the waves with Mimbi and Kipo, the seal and turtle. There's also a really fun use of color and style where not only are some detail images done in black and white, but some images turn black and white when they cross a border.

The story by Dolores Brown is quite simple. Mimbi and Kipo are told a legend about the moonbow (a rainbow at night), and then they see one and are turned into human children against their will. With the help of a thankfully kind fisherman, they are able to turn back and go home. The flow of the text was somewhat choppy, in my opinion. Also, Mimbi and Kipo's distress at being turned into humans might be too much for more sensitive children.

I think A Wave of Stars is best used in a setting where a child can really linger over the illustrations instead of having to hurry on to the next page to finish the story.