A baby bat and her mother get seperated during an owl attack. The baby bat lands in a bird's nest and is taken in by the mother bird, but only if she changes her bat ways. She finds her bat mother later in the story and is reunited with her bat family, but remains in contact with her bird family. "Stellaluna" is a beautiful story of a fostering/adoptive situation where we can see how others can be alike and still respect cultural differences as well. A great story for mixed race families.
Illustrations
Author and illustrator Janell Cannon did a beautiful job with her illustrations for "Stellaluna". A mixture of acrylics and color pencils, Cannon's art shows a wide range of emotion and action from the anger of the mother bird to the comical stunts of Stellaluna trying to land after her first flying adventure. I would recommend owning "Stellaluna" for the art alone.About the Author
Janell Cannon has worked in the public library system for several years. She has developed award winning summer reading programs for children and emphasized information about animals that are not usually considered huggable. This is what brought Cannon to choose a fruit bat for her first children's book. She is also the author of "Verdi", "Crickwing", "Pinduli", as well as several other children's books. Janell Cannon lives in southern California with her parrot and two cats.Final Thoughts and More Information
"Stellaluna" has much to offer young readers; touching friendship, an open definition of family, acceptance and understanding of the differences of others and much more. The illustrations are detailed and eye catching.
I definitely recommend "Stellaluna". "Stellaluna" is a great book for blended families, foster families, or adoptive families. I believe that "Stellaluna" offers a lesson of the importance of cultural differences.
"Stellaluna" is recommended for children ages 4-8.
(Published by Harcourt Brace & Company, 1993ISBN 0-15-280217-7
