The Man in the Moon (Guardians of Childhood)

Don’t you see him?

No, not the moon.

The Man in the Moon.

He wasn’t always a man.

Nor was he always on the moon.

He was once a child.

Like you.

Until a battle,

a shooting star,

and a lost balloon

sent him on a quest.

Meet the very first guardian of childhood.

MiM, the Man in the Moon.

Amazon.com Review
Amazon Best Books of the Month, September 2011: Twenty years in the making, William Joyce’s enchanting new picture book, The Man in the Moon, is worth the wait. In the first of his new Guardians of Childhood series, Joyce introduces the original guardian, MiM, the Man in the Moon. In glorious, colorful detail, readers are invited to imagine the Earth’s moon as a space age shipwreck, and the origin of bad dreams as the work of Pitch, King of the Nightmares. MiM’s fondest memories are of his devoted friend Nightlight, who sprinkled him with Dreamsand as an infant, and it is Nightlight who inspires MiM to become guardian to the hopes and dreams of all the children of Earth, but of course MiM will need help--from a toymaker, a fairy, a rabbit, and others like them. The Man in the Moon captures the wonder of childhood in a visual masterpiece that is to be treasured by readers of all ages. --Seira Wilson

Illustrations from The Man in the Moon
(Click on Images to Enlarge)

Balloons lost on earth often floated up to the moon, carrying the hopes and dreams of the children who lost them.

“As a baby, the Man in the Moon had everything a child could need.”

The Guardians of Childhood