Sun and Moon Together

Happy County #2

by Ethan Long

Sun and Moon Together is a vibrant, graphic picture book compendium for preschoolers set in a Richard Scarry-inspired environment by Geisel Award-winning creator Ethan Long.

Welcome to another busy day in Happy County! The Sun is out and shining down on lots of friends. Grammy Tammy from Miami is doing grimey, slimey laundry. Sssonny Sssnakerton wants to grow sssunflowers. And when the Sun says goodbye for the day, the Moon pops up for a new set of adventures. Now Molly and her mom can make moon shadows and howl night noises.

This 48-page full-color primer is chock-full of charming characters and basic scientific concepts connected to the sun and the moon presented in simple, accessible terms for the young audience, touching on: the water cycle, phases of the moon, the solar system, and plenty of clever scenarios to keep little ones engaged.

Genres: Picture Books, Science, Childrens, Animals, Humor, Education, Nonfiction

48 pages, Hardcover

First published August 11, 2020

About the author

Ethan Long is a popular, award-winning and internationally recognized children's book author and illustrator with over 70 children's books, a Theodor Seuss Geisel Award and an Emmy-nominated television series to his credit. Just about all of his awake time is spent writing stories, drawing pictures and spending time with his family. Since graduating from Ringling College of Art and Design in 1991, Ethan has never stopped evolving, challenging his creative approach with each new project while constantly honing his instantly identifiable style. Born and raised in Central Pennsylvania, his childhood memories serve as inspiration for many of his drawings and stories. He currently lives with his wife and three children in beautiful Orlando, Florida, USA and flip flops seamlessly between being a world famous children's book author and a stay-at-home dad.

Reviews

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

More fun and busy days in Happy County. Long continues to draw readers in and let them explore the illustrations for themselves. He offers scientific info on the our solar system along with the fun of seeing what characters are doing throughout the day.

[raccoon reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books are jam packed full of tiny details that carry on from book to book and page to page. If your kiddo loves fining hidden gems and reading allllll the tiny things then they will love this series.

[Stephanie Bange · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second in the Happy County series, this oversize book does many things well. It is a seek-and-find book (think "I Spy" or. Here's Waldo), a vocabulary and sight word builder (think Richard Scarry Busy, Busy Town books), a collection of short stories featuring characters in the town, and an informational book about science (in this case, the sun and moon) for youngest readers and listeners.

One long short story that includes the citizens of Happy County flows through the book, with several short stories about individuals and full pages of facts and information about the sun and moon woven in to tie it together. Given this scaffold for the book, it can be read from cover to cover. Another option is to read the informational pages or read the short stories to very young children not ready for the longer tale, as each short story episode can stand alone. They are light, funny, and very short. Told in frames, the short stories fill two to four page spreads and segue to the large seek and find pages.

Short stories include a visit from Grammy Tammy that is filled with rhymes and many words ending with the letter "y", the evening Hector the Director tries to film an action movie featuring the moon only to find it moves rather slowly, how the Bright Brothers survive their hot air balloon crash in the ocean, the sssurprise found in Sssonny's sssunflower garden, and how Emma and Mom get the last laugh during a backyard campout. In between are large two-page spreads with information about how the sun and/or moon affect the water cycle, photosynthesis, phases of the moon, the solar system, and solar power and seek-and-find activities.

The front endsheets introduce young readers to several cleverly-named characters that are in the book and/or can be found in the illustrations, and the back endsheets show what each one is doing later in the evening. Artwork was created using graphite pencil on Strathmore drawing paper, then scanned and digitally colorized. As with his other books, they are lively, bright and charming. While the page of information about the water cycle is a bit heavy on text, everything else is "just right"!

Kids will spend hours pouring over this book and see new things every time. Parents will appreciate the humor infused within - be sure to read the company names on all of the trucks...very clever.

Recommended for Toddlers - grade 1.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Happy County residents have adventures learning about the sun and the moon and ways they help the Earth, and having fun in the day and night.

This is a hodge-podge collection of little adventures. Some are educational (like the pages on the water cycle, photosynthesis, planets in our solar system, phases of the moon, and tides) while others are just goofy and fun (like the pages about making moon shadows, going to the beach, or going to an evening concert). Every page is packed with a lot of things going on, and several of the pages even prompt readers to find certain characters or things in the busy illustrations. This is a book that could entertain a child for hours will make them smile, but will also teach them some real science and English vocabulary without them even realizing it (many of the pages have items labeled with their English names, making this a good pick for beginning readers and ELL students too).

[Roben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did you read Richard Scarry books? My now grown kids loved them. This Happy County book is a lot like Richard Scarry. It incorporates a "look and find" element that will be popular with kids that like to do that. And it tells the continuing story of Happy County. PLUS - it includes information on the sun, the moon, and the planets! While not a book for storytime, this is a book that kids will loot at over and over to see what they might have missed. With a little effortless scientific knowledge added to the fun. Spoiler - the cow finally manages to jump over the mooooooon!

[Viviane Elbee]

Very detailed illustrations are fun for young children to pore over.

This book doesn’t really have a story - it seems more like a combination of fictional mini-sketches and a handful of non-fiction facts. The non-fiction is mixed with the fiction and separating which is which may be tougher for very young children.

Good book for kids who like to spot things in detailed illustrations.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fun read, with lots of pictures and details. It's a search and find book mixed with humor, some graphic novel style pages, and science information about the water cycle, photosynthesis, phases of the moon, low tide vs. high tide. The information is presented in a way where a child might not even realize they're learning science!

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an ingenious way to have fun with science and educate kids about their planet. At first it reminded me of Richard Scarry's books, which I loved as a child. It had a little of that, but so much more. Well done!

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would have been 5 stars neither my kid nor I can find the fan with the fuzzy hat on the football page and it’s driving us crazy. It’s not the lady in the forefront cause she’s a chicken and that’s the comb on top of her head. What’s happening here??!! Where is it??!!?

[Maggie Ignasiak · Rating 2 out of 5]

-what.
-what?
-okay.
-okay?
-I love Ethan Long and was excited at first to see this venture into the realm of Richard Scarry's Busytown, but this went straight over my head.

[Riley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A series of very loosely connected scenarios about the sun, moon and odd characters. Lots of pictures for children to investigate. A little science. No story.

[Pinky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Happy County residents have fun whether the sun is out or the moon.

[skcocnaH · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was way too busy for me.

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

A return visit to Happy County, but this adventure involves how the sun and moon play a big part in the resident's lives both day and night.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

The characters of Happy County return in this book which teaches children about the sun and the moon. With more complicated text and explanations of science concepts such as photosynthesis, tides, solar power, planets, and moon phases, the age of the target audience may need to increase.
The colorful and detailed illustrations will still appeal the children who enjoy looking for humor and new and familiar characters and sub-plots. E.g. The Bright Brothers still have trouble flying!

[Baby Bookworm · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review was originally written for The Baby Bookworm. Visit us for new picture books reviews daily!

Hello, friends! Our book today is Sun and Moon Together by Ethan Long, the second title in the creator’s Happy County series.

Welcome back to Happy County, a busy and bustling little township filled with friends, facts, and fun. Once again structured in a digest-style narrative – featuring 18 chapters that run one or two pages each – readers spend two days with with residents of Happy County as they go about their days. Along the way, readers can learn vocabulary words, spot designs at a hot air balloon festival, learn about solar power, join a ssssavvy ssssnake ssssalesman, and much more.

Colorful and fun, but slightly uneven. Long’s Richard Scarry-inspired Happy County is just as wonderfully illustrated as before, with lots of details, visual gags, and nods to fans of the series’s previous book. However, the topics covered in each spread don’t have the same seamless flow that Hello, World! managed: while vocabulary pages, a collection of night sounds, and a cute mother-daughter tale of evening shadows are winners, the abrupt introduction of higher scientific concepts like the phases of the moon and photosynthesis fall short. These spreads feel either unnecessarily lengthy for the light and breezy narrative (a description of the water cycle stops a read-aloud dead), or far too brief to get a solid understanding of the material (how exactly do tides work?). This makes for an uneven storytime, though the length overall was still fine, and JJ loved the artwork; additionally, both text and illustrations are built for repeat perusals. Overall, not as cohesive as its predecessor, but still a colorful and enjoyable book for little readers. Baby Bookworm approved.

(Note: A copy of this book was provided to The Baby Bookworm by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)

Be sure to check out The Baby Bookworm for more reviews!

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a tall picture book with fun illustrations. The story is about how the sun and the moon affect life on our planet, but the characters are animals living like humans. Very interesting science facts are included.
CONTENTS:
Welcome;
Grammy Tammy;
The Water Cycle;
Photosynthesis;
Evening Falls;
Phases of the Moon;
Pick a Tide;
A Moon Movie;
The Planets;
Hot-Air Hullabaloo;
The Bright Brothers;
At the Beach;
Sssonny’s Sssunflowers;
Solar Power;
Go, Team, Go!;
Moon Shadows;
Night Sounds;
Turn Up the Music!

[Lgordo · Rating 3 out of 5]

We loved the first book in this series, but #2 was a disappointment. Just not as funny, not as clever, not as many laughs. The "science" was a little too much for my preschoolers to understand. Long should have stuck with silly, and not tried to be educational.

[Melissa the Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the Happy County books! These are great gift books for kids in your life that will help expand their general knowledge and teach them about how the world works. The illustrations are bright, big, and colorful, and the content is excellent. Highly recommend this series!