Kim Krans

A curious cat wonders to whom the moon belongs in this poetic picture-book, finding many different answers as each animal or other being - the wolf, the tree, the ocean - claim the celestial body as its own. In the end the moon itself must step in and settle the dispute, stating that it belongs to all. Satisfied, the cat curls up for a nap, only to awaken with a new question: to whom does the sun belong...?

I enjoyed the text here, with its spare use of rhyme, and appreciated the story idea show more itself, with its emphasis on the moon and its light as something that can be enjoyed by all. The true standout of Whose Moon Is That? however, is author/illustrator Kim Krans' gorgeous artwork! The use of color - again, sparingly - the depiction of the various animals, it was all quite magical, perfectly capturing the feeling of the narrative. Recommended to all young moon watchers, and to anyone looking for picture-books addressing big ideas. show less

Kim Krans had an awful year involving infertility, miscarriage, and divorce that led to midlife crisis, depression, an eating disorder, and this book. I feel sorry for what she has undergone, and some readers will probably find this "raw graphic memoir" with its mission statement of "drawing the feeling" to be quite moving. There are some individual pages that are quite remarkable.

Unfortunately, I'm a cynical old bastard and mostly found the "raw" to be messy, the "graphic" to be scribbly, show more and the "memoir" to be sketchy, withholding, and at times a sort of hair shirt performance piece.

From what I can glean, Krans dropped out of her daily life to live in an ashram in Pennsylvania for a month while producing this book as a daily diary of her emotional state. It's a variation on the 24-hour comic that has been around for decades. She seems to begin the project aware that she is producing a book, going so far to include a draft for the cover on page 30, just three days into her stay.

She does not disclose in the book whether she has already sold the project to a publisher as she begins or is producing it on spec to shop around afterward. I was curious about the ashram, so I checked the website of the Himalayan Institute in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, and their current posted rates are $160/day for single room with an additional fee of $40/day for amenities (meals, classes, etc.), meaning a 30-day retreat would run $6,000. Also, her stay in the ashram followed a two-week trip to India just two months previous (And there is a New York City sublet in play throughout this?) Admittedly, I don't know what Himalaya Institute rates were in April 2019 or if Krans had some sort of discount, publisher's advance, or other subsidy to cover her stay, but I find myself distracted by all the above, wondering what role finances and/or a possible deadline played in the production of the book.

Having read several books about antiracism in the last few weeks, I'm additionally distracted as I consider the cultural appropriation aspects of Krans' obsession with the spirituality and alternative medicines of India and other countries.

When I could focus on the pages of the book, I found much of them devoted to a skeletal stand-in for the author, which creates an odd dissonance in a work that repeatedly stresses "truth" and not filtering. And I was a bit flummoxed by the climax of the book -- teased repeatedly throughout -- being an immense gratitude for oatmeal preparation.

Bottom line: This book was not for me, but I do not deny that others may find it compelling or cathartic. show less

Kim Krans has illustrated an alphabet book that will engage everyone. The letters are surrounded by pen drawings with some color, all of things that begin with the letter on the page. Each letter featured beautiful black ink drawings with lots of detail. The level of detail takes this alphabet book into the category of seek and find.

This was a captivating read, especially for a book with no words. As I read I realized that there was more than the apparent objects being illustrated, but show more rather layers of unexpected things that also began with the same letter, for example the letter 'r' also showed a reflection that was really not obvious to me. A list at the end of the book showed me how tricky some of them were, I did not catch all of them! show less

More enchanting drawings, with companionable alliteration (ten trees, six snakes) and lots of visual things to explore or seek and find. Not quite as story like as ABC dream, but a lovely companion book.