Sayre, April Pulley. Stars Beneath Your Bed. Illustrated by Ann Jonas. Greenwillow Books / HarperCollins, 2005. 24 pages (0-06-057189-6)

Ages 5-8

Poetry and science grace one another in a lyrical picture book about dust. Sayre’s narrative begins with reference to a fire-painted sky in the morning -— the result of dust in the atmosphere scattering light. It ends by describing the pink, orange and red palette of sunset -— also the result of dust. In between, Sayre examines many of the ways dust is created: dirt flies when we ride our bikes, when a meerkat digs, when cheetahs chase gazelles; cotton rubs off our jeans and becomes dust; so does the smoke from burning toast or the eyelash of seal. “Old dust stays around . . . That dusty film on your computer screen / might have muddied a dinosaur.” And there is dust that comes from outer space: “The dust beneath your bed might be from Mars . . . or a bit of the moon.” Who knew? Dust may be small, but Sayre invites readers to consider it as an extraordinary element in the grand scheme of nature. A short prose narrative at the end of the book provides additional scientific information about dust and expands on information referenced in the poetic text. Ann Jonas’ bright water-color illustrations are a simple, strong backdrop for the words. (MS) ©2005 Cooperative Children’s Book Center