A Cool Moonlight Paperback – April 21, 2005

Angela Johnson has a way about her writing style that is so seamlessly poetic it is hard at first to believe that this book is not just one extended poem. It isn't, but it is a beautiful book about a young girl named Lila who is allergic to the sun and becomes a moon girl- her whole life takes place in the protection of night. Lila's narration is ethereal; in fact, it is almost ghostly. After being secluded from the outside world, she develops two friends that only she can see. These two girls wear wings and bring gifts that Lila believes will allow her to finally feel the sun on her skin.This book is a journey of Lila's ultimate self-acceptance and her realization that not all dreams come true. The way in which she discovers this is not destroying, though. Her light is a softer kind of light, and being a moon girl is just as good as being a "sun goddess". Angela spins a world of shadows that is not entirely dark. Lila's world is strangely alluring; it is a whole different place than ours, but she keeps it all in perspective. While we spend our days under the intensity of the sun, she will forever be able to relax under her soft moonlight. This book has stayed with me since I first read it eight years ago. Lila is a companion that haunts me. Her life has always drawn me to it, and it will draw in all readers who open this book.

I guess it's a good gift for a readet

Because of a rare condition called xeroderma pigmentosum, sunshine and some artificial light have always been eight-year-old Lila's enemy. Sunlight burns her skin and can even cause her to go blind, so Lila lives in darkened rooms and is involved in many nighttime adventures. She sleeps during the day and attends school in her own dim kitchen. She waits each evening for sunset and darkness, when she can go outside to play and explore her neighborhood. Even at night, she must slather herself with sunscreen, wear sunglasses and cover up.Lila doesn't lack for companions. Monk, Lila's older sister, calls the family "shadow people and proud of it." Monk is Lila's co-adventurer, bundling her sister up at night to take her to coffee houses and on rides. After dark, Lila's dad accompanies her to the grocery store where they race shopping carts in the parking lot. David, a neighbor boy, brings Lila comic books and comradeship. Reading the comic books makes her want to be a super hero called the sun goddess/moon girl.Lila's friends, Elizabeth and Alyssa, visit her only at night; somehow no one else has met them or even seen them. Her mysterious nocturnal visitors secretly plot with Lila to find a way for her to enjoy sunlight. In fact, they promise to help fill her sun bag. When it's filled, Lila will no longer have to live only in darkness. She can't wait until she's able to go outside during the day and dance in sunshine as a true sun goddess/moon girl.As time goes by and her ninth birthday approaches, Lila begins to wonder why no one has seen Alyssa and Elizabeth --- even when she points them out. She also puzzles over the sun bag --- how can filling it with sun pieces "fix" her?This is an intriguing, unusual story told in a graceful, childlike voice. Although I was too aware of the lack of capitals for the first few pages, I soon realized it contributed to the smooth stream-of-consciousness narrative flow. I highly recommend A COOL MOONLIGHT for its gorgeous writing, complex mysteries and triumphant conclusion. --- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon ([email protected])

this book shows how Lila really wants to go out in the sun without having to be covered in clothes .she doesn't do exactly that but she still does

I liked A Cool Moonlight because there is a girl named Lila that has problems going out in the sun. One day her mom took her out to the playground and when the sun came out she burned her hands. She dreams of going outside to see the sun. Lila always asks her friends Lysa and Elizabeth stuff like how does the sun feel on your face? Lila is happy when she celebrates her birthday, but her party is at night outside. I didn't like the end of the story because it didn't say the disease she had and she was never cured.

Nearly-nine-year-old Lila lives in the dark, forced out of the sunlight by a skin condition. She has a plan for getting into the light, though, with the help of two mysterious friends. Who are Alyssa and Elizabeth, and why do they disappear whenever anyone else is around?Lila's distinctive voice sounds almost like poetry, creating intense images for the reader to share. The characters are intriguing, and Lila's secretive plans will keep older children and adults alike turning the pages.

I can't say I enjoyed this book. The cover and summary seemed interesting. I read it. The book was not interesting. This book is just about a little girl with xeroderma pigmentosa (which is not an allergy. It says it is an allergy in the book, but that is not accurate.) This condition makes her (Lila) sensitive to sunlight. So she sleeps during the day and dances in her yard during the night. She has two friends, Alyssa, and Elizabeth, who visit her in the night and wear tutus and fairy wings. She also has a friend named David. And a sister named Monk. This book is just about how she plots with Alyssa and Elizabeth to go out into the sunlight during the day, as she longs to "feel the warmth of the sun on her cheeks". Lila and David read comic books about The Magnificent Mutants, superheroes with different powers. Lila's favorite Mutant is Talia Tears. She says that if she were a superhero, she would want to be both Sun Goddess and Moon Girl. She says she would not want to wait until it was day or night to have power. She would want to always have power. In the end of the book, she realizes that xeroderma pigmentosa isn't so bad- she wouldn't mind being a Moon Girl only. I didn't exactly enjoy this book for the following reasons: The whole storyline was extremely boring and shallow. I did not find it touching. There are many grammatical errors in this book. Plus, all the letters are lowercase. Bottom line: I didn't enjoy this book. A young child probably wouldn't, either; they would be bored to tears.