I found a copy of today’s dreamy Perfect Picture Book at a local indie. I was lucky that this shop was one of a few with a signed print included. Perfect for the littles in my family!
Title: If the Moon
Written By: Matthew Burgess
Illustrated By: Matthew Forsythe
Publisher/Date: Stonefruit Studio, an imprint of Sourcebooks/2026
Suitable for Ages: 3-7 (and younger)
Themes/Topics: poetry, moon, bedtime, dreams, anxiety, questions, quilt
Opening:
If can be a dark room where worries swell and rise…
Or,
If can be a raft.
Brief Synopsis: A young child in bed contemplates questions as they overcome worries and drift off to sleep.
Links to Resources:
· Check out this free paper plate quilt activity;
· Do you have a favorite stuffed animal that helps soothe you while you drift off to sleep? Describe in words or pictures your animal and any adventures, real or imagined, you might share;
· Upcycle and create new life for baby blankets.
Why I Like this Book:
With lovely lyrical language and soft-hued illustrations, Burgess and Forsythe have created a dreamy picture book perfect for bedtime snuggles. At the outset, Burgess describes a young child in a darkened room ready for sleep but anxious. Worries “swell and rise” but not if you escape them and dwell, instead, on other thoughts. How does one escape? For the unnamed child pictured, the quilt serves first as a portal and then as a sail on a raft, transporting the child towards further discoveries.
For much of the remainder of the text, Burgess prompts young listeners to wonder what would happen if they were a particular animal or celestial body in a particular situation. By focusing outwards, young listeners are able to step back from whatever they’re anxious about and imagine more pleasant circumstances. I especially loved the lines, “If you were a bear snuggling in a winter lair, which memories would warm your fur?” So peaceful. So calming. Such a lovely image as one drifts off to sleep.
The smaller size and lovely cloth binding paired with the watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil illustrations and low-word count text make If the Moon particularly suitable for the littlest of listeners. From the seas to the skies and outer space, from the past when dinosaurs roamed to now, the rhythmic text and dreamy illustrations are perfect for cozy bedtime reads or anytime your little feels anxious.
A Note about Craft:
Burgess draws little listeners into the poetry by addressing them directly as “you” through much of the text.
Nowhere in the text is a quilt mentioned, but the creatures and celestial bodies pictured in the quilt are woven through the text. The quilt itself functions as the route from worries and as a sail on a raft as the young child journeys towards discoveries.
This Perfect Picture Book entry is being added to Susanna Hill’s Perfect Picture Book list. Check out the other great picture books featured there!
