Midnight and Moon

PreS-Gr 3–Gorgeous illustrations and spare prose tell the story of a young girl and a horse overcoming challenges to help others. The girl and her mother, who appear to be white, spot a white foal who is blind and a sighted black foal companion, and name them Midnight and Moon. Comparisons are drawn between the white foal who is blind (Moon) and the girl, Clara, who does not and seemingly cannot speak—each is noted to have highly perceptive hearing. While Midnight guides Moon and helps out when Moon is unable to follow the pack, Clara attends school and meets her own companion, a dark-haired, light-skinned boy named Jack. When the horses are threatened by a winter snowstorm that obscures their vision, Clara is finally able to whisper the words “Come, Midnight…come Moon.” Moon, aurally sensitive, hears her and leads the pack to safety. The appeal of the illustrations, the story of friendship, and the presence of horses will engage children. However, adults may find the story saccharine, and object to a “disability” that is overcome through sheer willpower as a plot device.