If My Moon Was Your Sun

This book is exceptional! As I read about Max and his grandfather, I felt my heart swell and fill to the brim with love. Love is, after all, at the very center of this wonderful story. Love is its North Star and what tugs Max toward his grandfather again and again. This book is beautifully illustrated and poetically written. It is truly an edition to treasure and to revisit any time you need a reminder of all that is good and kind in life.

This is a sweet, sad book about a grandfather with dementia and his grandson who desperately wants to save him. Even sensitive children would get a lot out of this book, especially those who may be dealing with the same situation. The bond between grandparents and grandchildren is special, even when they stop remembering.

This is beautiful example of how you don't need a lot of words to express the love. Short books can do wonders.

I felt this book so closely. The whole idea of longing, loving and being there is so important and often neglected in today's time. And I loved how this book dealt with it by comparing it with the phenomenon of sun and moon.

I'm very attached to my grandfather as well. So, this book was In literal sense the best depiction of fear I have of loosing him one day.

Loved it!

This beautifully written book will certainly tug at your heartstrings. It oozes with love and acceptance and gives a child a glimpse of what it is like to have a beloved grandparent in his life who is experiencing dementia. It highlights a very special relationship and strong bond of love between Max, who is nine years old, and his grandfather who is in their small town nursing home because unfortunately his memory is deteriorating.

Max takes it upon himself one day to skip school and to visit that nursing home with the intention of kidnapping his grandfather and spending the entire day with him just like old times, (if they are not apprehended of course). Yes, you heard correctly, Max wills to be his grandfather's liberator.

He manages to free his grandfather (and another resident, Miss Schneider, who eagerly follows the duo out the door too). He puts them safely on a bus and together they head to a very familiar summer meadow to relax and enjoy each other's company. Grandfather loves to hum classical music such as Brahms, Schubert, and Mozart and he and Max revel in their love for each other throughout the time they spend there.

The meadow is the first place that grandfather kissed his grandmother and it was there he proposed marriage to her. Max and grandfather laze in the grass and chat away, while Miss Schneider dances in the sunlight, recalling her early days of being a dance instructor.

Will Max and his entourage be discovered and will everyone be returned safely to the nursing home without incident? Will he be in trouble for carrying out such a dastardly deed?

This book is a perfect catalyst to start a conversation with your child about dementia. Even though memories fade and are sometimes completely lost, the strong thread of love prevails forever in their loved ones' hearts. It includes a CD audiobook featuring classical music for children by George Bizet and Sergei Prokofiev. I highly recommend this book be available in classrooms, libraries, and of course individual homes. The book adds a touch of humour to a very heartbreaking and very sad story regarding a person with Alzheimer's. I highly recommend this book.

Oh my, this was an amazing children's book.



I don't think that it would be appropriate for younger children--I don't know if they would be able to understand the depth of emotions and thoughts that are expressed in this book. It would be perfect for upper elementary and up especially those that are living with and processing through "the Great Forgetting" of a loved one. This book will make you want to cry--it is beautifully written.



Sam escapes with his grandfather and another nursing home resident to visit a special place to his grandfather because of the deep longing for his presence. While their escape is being made the profound love and care that transcends forgetfulness...is sweet and deep.



My favorite part of the book, and presumably where the title comes from, is when the grandson tells his grandfather that the thing that he fears the most is the time that his grandfather will not remember him anymore. The grandfather, touches his grandson's head, and tells him that like the sun and moon's movements that is what his remembering is like. It may not always be seen, but the memories are still there.



This was an excellent book. Better than I anticipated.

In Andeas Steinhöfel’s If My Moon Was Your Sun, 10-year-old Max decides to break his beloved grandfather, who has a bit dementia, out of his nursing home. Grandpa’s wily fellow patient Miss Schneider escapes, as well, and the trio go on day-long adventure. The book’s wonderful message, ably captured in Matthew O. Anderson’s translation from the original German, comes through in Steinhöfel’s prose and Nele Palmtag’s beautiful color illustrations Each chapter ends with a musical reference from Sergei Prokofiev’s A Summer Day or Georges Bizet’s Petite Suite. Sadly, my ARC did not come with the read-along CD audiobook that contains the 12 pieces. Highly recommended — and not just for the young.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received this book from NetGalley, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) and Plough Publishing House in exchange for an honest review.

This is a beautiful story reminiscent of And Every Day the Walk Home Gets Longer. Written almost like a poem, the relationship between the boy and his grandfather will bring tears of happiness to your eyes.

What a beautiful and tender story depicting the difficulty children have accepting and understanding the diminishing abilities of the ones they love. I loved this book. It would be a great read for any child faced with a grandparent with memory loss..

The first thing that comes to mind when reading this book is how heartwarming it is. I know it's common to associate children's books with this word, but in the case of <i> If My Moon Was Your Sun</i> I feel like it's a hundred times more fitting.
<i> If My Moon Was Your Sun</i> tells the story of Max, a boy who "kidnaps" his grandfather and takes him on an adventure, honoring the connection he Max feels with his grandfather, which has been hindered by his grandfather's relocation to a nursing home due to his developing Alzheimer. As the story progresses and the narrator reveals more about Max's plan and his relationship with his grandfather, we get to read a funny, bittersweet tale of someone who is aware that they might lose something really precious to them (their grandfather's love and recognition), and who just wants to spend more time with him before it's too late.
I only read the book, but I am sure that the accompanying audiobook and music will only make this tale more endearing, and charming. This is definitely the kind of tale that remains timeless and that you can read as a child (or to a child) and then revisit, only to discover more beautiful little gems of bittersweetness you might have missed on your first reading.
The art was amazing. The colors and simple shapes, as well as the depiction of Miss Schneider, grandfather, and Max, was so spot on that you could not imagine them looking any other way. I believe they complimented the book perfectly.
My favorite quote from this book was after Max reveals he is afraid of one day asking his grandfather "Do you remember?" and he will not, and the grandfather tells him "You can't always see the moon, but you know it's always there. Right?". Which ties to the title <i>If My Moon Was Your Sun</i> and just adds another bittersweet layer to this beautiful tale.

The copyright page on this book lists it as originally published in 2015 in Germany. This little gem is so wonderful I wonder what took so long to decide to release it to the English-speaking world. I only wish I wasn’t reading it on a black and white Kindle Paperwhite. I checked out a “look inside” on Amazon and the colors of the illustrations are so vibrant and fun.

As with most children’s books, this story teaches a lesson. The author is able to get this lesson across without it being shoved in your face. Max loves his grandfather and misses spending time outdoors with him. But grandpa has the “great forgetting” and now lives in assisted living. Luckily, grandpa still has more lucid moments that non-lucid and he reassures Max that even if he forgets him at times, his love is always there. You don’t have to see love to be loved.

It’s a beautiful tale of love, freedom, loss, and protection. I can’t even imagine the depth that would come from experiencing this story with the illustrations and the music as it’s being packaged. I believe I may have found a Christmas gift for one of my nieces or nephews.

Max is a 9 year old boy. He loves his grandfather that suffers from dementia. Very early in the morning Max wakes up. He gets dress and very quietly leaves his home as he knows something is missing. What is it? He walks very far and ends up at his grandfather's nursing home. He gets himself into the locked and secured nursing home. When he finds his grandfather, Max takes his grandfather to a country meadow. Another resident has slipped out with them and tags along. She is Miss Steinhofel who dances in the meadow. Why does she dance?

This is a lovely picture book which tells the story of a boy and his grandfather love for each other. The illustrations are beautiful and tells the story. Also there is a CD of music that goes with the book that contributes to the picture book. A great book to introduce dementia to the kids and talk about it. Don't miss reading this book!

A poignant story about a boy's love for this grandfather and his struggle to grapple with the reality that he's losing his memories to Alzheimer's.

In an attempt to "free" the grandfather from the nursing home in which he's confined, the boy arranges an escape. The two spend a day together, along with a whimsical elderly woman who tags along and adds vivacity and spontaneity to the day.

A very sweet and sobering read. Highly recommended.

This is a wonderful story to read with children whose grandparents are being to develop Alzheimer’s disease. The story is told from a 9-year old’s perspective of what it is like to suddenly lose a grandparent to Alzheimer’s. It describes the disease and the effect it has on both the adult and the child, and how it can alter that relationship. Even better, it also describes how parts of the relationship will always remain the same which is where the title comes from. The title, however, is a bit too deep and difficult to place with the story. However, that is my only critique with this story.
This is a beautifully illustrated book with what looks like a sophisticated child’s drawings on how the story is told.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy to read. All opinions are my own.