Moonfinder
A storybook for the whole family!

Moonfinder is the story of a little boy who learns about the phases of the moon with his dad.

Each page includes a full-color illustration depicting the location and appearance in the sky of the moon at each phase, along with "celestial" views showing the corresponding position of the moon in its orbit around the earth.

With Moonfinder, every member of the family can learn how to follow the monthly cycle of the moon's phases!

For more info, read the Detailed Description below!

Price: $15.00
Format: Hardcover
Number of Pages: 32
Dimensions: 8.5" x 11" x 0.3125"
ISBN: 0979221129
ISBN-13: 9780979221125

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Detailed Description
Moonfinder is different from other children's picture books about the phases of the moon. Moonfinder was created specifically to show how the moon's phases change over the passing days, as the moon changes its position in the sky.

Moonfinder is the story of a little boy named David who follows the changing position and phases of the moon with his dad over the days and the weeks of an entire month. The story includes a "technical interlude" with a "celestial view" that shows the moon in its orbit around the earth.

In this way, Moonfinder explains the astronomy behind the moon's changing phases that correspond to the changing positions of the moon in the sky. The story also includes a colophon at the end with more detailed information for continuing your study of the moon and its phases.

Moonfinder depicts the actual appearances of the moon as it follows its monthly cycle. We hope that Moonfinder will succeed as a pedagogic tool where other kid's stories about the moon fail, in helping children (and their parents!) to learn how to observe the cycle of the moon in the sky.

Additionally, Moonfinder presents this lesson in the context of a heartwarming story of a son learning with his father about this important aspect of the natural world. Thus, Moonfinder presents a positive image of a boy learning with his dad. Perhaps Moonfinder will inspire other dads to use this story with their own children, and to become proactive with helping their kids cultivate an interest in science and nature.

Moonfinder, 32 full-color pages, list price $15.00 from Fourth Day Press.

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The Story of Moonfinder, by Jay Ryan
My oldest son David was born in 1994. When he was a baby, I would often hold him at night and he would stare up at the moon. I'd tell him over and over, "That's the moon! The moon!"

From the time Dave was a toddler, whenever the moon was out, I'd ask him "Where's the moon?" He'd look around the sky and try to find the moon. When he found it, I'd tell him,"You're a Moonfinder!" He would get so excited! It was a feeling of accomplishment!

Moonfinding became a family tradition. When our kids were little, they would often try to see who can be first to find the moon, to be rewarded with the title of "Moonfinder." (Dave and his siblings are now teenagers, and it's become one of dad's weary old running jokes to still ask them to find the moon, but I still fondly recall those fun days with the little kids!)

In 1997, I wrote a children's story entitled Moonfinder, loosely based on my own actual experiences with my son. It's a story about a little boy named David who learns about the phases of the moon with his dad. In the story, David finds the moon each night over the course of a month and notices the changes in the moon's phases and position in the sky.

Each page image of Moonfinder is an acrylic painting. From 1998 to 2000, I created twenty-seven of these paintings for the pages of Moonfinder. It was a lot of work! I was collaborating with a book developer friend in New York City, who was submitting publishing proposals for Moonfinder to every publishing house we could think of, in Manhattan and beyond.

We tried long and hard for four years, but could not find a publisher in New York or anywhere else that was willing to publish Moonfinder. Finally in 2001, we were forced to give up on the process. Moonfinder languished as an unpublished work for 10 years, and life went on in our house as we raised our kids.

We are now happy to finally bring Moonfinder into print through Fourth Day Press! We hope that your family will be inspired by our personal tale and that your children will also learn to follow the phases of the moon.

Moonfinder, 32 full-color pages, list price $15.00 from Fourth Day Press.

(Please Note -- all domestic orders are shipped via USPS media mail.
For expedited delivery, please order through one of the distributors.)

(USA and Canada Only!)
(For International Orders, please order through one of our distributors.)

Return Policy