It is the book - not just text or art - that has to be whole.” A picture book writer needs to remain as supple as a dancer in order to accommodate a partner (the illustrator). There is a subtle dance between art and text which cannot be entirely planned for when the writer begins. Speaking of picture books, Yolen says on her website, “The demands of picture books are so different from the demands of novels. Her writing has won many, many awards, including two Nebulas. Her latest is The Emerald Circus, short stories that reimagine other tales. She’s written more than 365 books, some for children, some YA, some fantasy, some sci-fi, and some historical fiction. The author of Owl Moon, Jane Yolen, who is also a poet, is prolific. This love doesn’t need words it’s reflected in every action, every quiet footstep, every animal hidden in the illustrations, to which you need to pay attention.

The illustration below that sentence is of a father carrying his daughter through the snow, toward home. You’ll notice I wrote that sentence with line breaks, as if it were a poem. “When you go owling / you don’t need words / or warm / or anything but hope. 'I've become aware of nature through my husband', said Yolen.In Owl Moon, love looks like a father and daughter owling under a bright shining moon. The 'Pa' character is based on her husband, David, who was an avid outdoorsman and birdwatcher. According to Jane Yolen's website, she is actually Yolen's child, Heidi.

While the first-person text does not specify the child's gender, the jacket flap copy refers to the characters as 'a little girl and her father'. Along their way, they encounter a great horned owl. The story deals with a father who takes his child owling for the first time on a cold winter night. It is gentle yet adventurous, quiet yet full of sound'. Usually stories of a little girl are with her mother. Yolen described the book as 'a positive family story. It has been translated into more than a dozen foreign languages, including French, German, Chinese, and Korean. It won many awards, most notably the Caldecott Medal for its illustrations, and has appeared on Reading Rainbow in the US. Owl Moon is a 1987 children's picture book by Jane Yolen, illustrated by John Schoenherr.

Owl and moon book