How to Reach the Moon was first published in 2022, in Argentina and in Spanish, as Como llegar a la luna, and only in 2025 in English.
This South American origin explains some of the truly alien feel throughout Nicholas Schuff’s book, though some of it may just be Schuff. When the abuelo (grandfather) in the book starts telling stories, Schuff gives readers just the titles…and I ground to a halt. “The Tale of the Golden Ant”? “The Legend of the Largest Branch in the World”? And the most baffling, and my favorite, “The Adventures of the Mouse-Faced Bird”! What? I was lost. Is this Argentina? Schuff?
The story’s structure and pacing are also original, nicely so. Every summer, Emilio takes the train to visit his abuelo. They enjoy eating dinner together outside every night, and talk well into the dark. (That’s when we get “The Adventures of the Mouse-Faced Bird.”) Eventually, these stories lead them to talk of the moon, and Emilio’s abuelo invites his grandson to meet the moon.
They walk through the forest, becoming both part of the forest and part of the stories they tell. They eventually reach a ravine, where they can see the moon reflected in the water below. And in they jump, continuing the wonder and exploration. (Clearly, the stories never stop.)
Ana Sender’s illustrations are also nicely original. They have a dream-like quality, illustrating the events that are happening but also blending and blurring at times, like the story the loving family members tell each other.
