Sun Moon Star

by Kurt Vonnegut, Ivan Chermayeff (Illustrator)

Overview

Sun Moon Star is the story of the birth of Jesus—as told by Kurt Vonnegut. This children's book takes the newborn Jesus' perspective, offering beautiful and insightful descriptions of the world from someone newly born into it. In this book, we follow Jesus and meet the people most important to his life—presented in new and surprising ways. 

A powerful departure from Vonnegut's more adult work, Sun Moon Star gives readers a rare glimpse of the writer's talent in a format that's unique and unexpected. Originally published in 1980, the book is long out of print, but is available as an E-book.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781609807245
Publisher:	Seven Stories Press
Publication date:	11/17/2016
Pages:	64
Sales rank:	397,488
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 12.10(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	5 - 9 Years

About the Author

KURT VONNEGUT (1922-2007) was among the few grandmasters of twentieth-century American letters, one without whom the very term American literature would mean much less than it does now. Vonnegut's other books from Seven Stories Press include God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian, the national hardcover and paperback bestseller A Man Without a Country, and, with Lee Stringer, Like Shaking Hands with God. 
IVAN CHERMAYEFF is a renowned illustrator, designer, and artist whose illustrations, art installations for contemporary buildings, and graphic design work has won numerous awards and accolades, including gold medals from the Society of Illustrators and the American Institute of Graphic Arts.

Date of Birth:

November 11, 1922

Date of Death:

April 2007

Place of Birth:

Indianapolis, Indiana

Place of Death:

New York, New York

Education:

Cornell University, 1940-42; Carnegie-Mellon University, 1943; University of Chicago, 1945-47; M.A., 1971

Editorial Reviews

Vonnegut's beguiling children's book, first published in 1980, spins the Nativity tale in a cerebral, humanist direction.

The New York Times Book Review - Maria Russo

09/26/2016
Long out of print, Vonnegut’s only book for children—a 1980 interpretation of the Nativity story—returns in a new edition, again paired with graphic designer Chermayeff’s cutout shapes of stars, suns, and moons, set against deep blue backgrounds. The child is referred to only as It or the Creator of the Universe, and Vonnegut’s narrative dwells on the child’s disorientation having traded an existence in which “It had known all things and been all things” for the limitations of human flesh. Readers soon learn that the celestial objects the infant sees are actually people and things nearby, transformed by bleary, teary eyes and the novelty of sight itself. A crescent moon, for example, is actually “the forehead of Joseph,/ who would pretend to be the Creator’s father/ with all his heart.” Mary, the shepherds, the Wise Men, and Herod are all present or discussed, but it’s Vonnegut’s descriptions of the sheer newness of human experience (the child’s “fourth dream was simply green. It had never seen/ green/ before”) that make this an intriguing and memorable perspective on the Incarnation. Ages 5–9. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

"It’s Vonnegut’s descriptions of the sheer newness of human experience (the child’s “fourth dream was simply green. It had never seen/ green/ before”) that make this an intriguing and memorable perspective on the Incarnation."
—Publishers Weekly

"Vonnegut tells the story of the Nativity in his own original style that's both delightful and charming. Complete with illustrations, this is a read suitable for both children and adults alike."
—The Bookbag UK

From the Publisher