Natalia M. Belting taught history at the University of Illinois for 43 years. She wrote many children's books. Bernarda Bryson went to Cleveland School of Art and learned lithography from a friend. "Throughout history men have given strange, often, beautiful names to the months of the year. This enchanting almanac offers poetic interpretations of these names, based on legends from many times and places." Source: The book's inner page.

Natalia Belting and Bernarda Bryson - whose previous collaborative project, The Sun Is a Golden Earring, was chosen as a Caldecott Honor Book in 1963 - here turn their attention to the folklore of the lunar calendar, and the various names given to the lunar months, or moons, by the diverse peoples of the world. From January - known as the moon-of-the-little-finger's-partner by the Klamath people of the northwestern U.S. - through December - moon of Yul to the Lapps (Saami) of northern Scandinavia - the twelve months of the solar calendar are all covered, with examples from all parts of the world.

Just as with Belting's Moon Was Tired of Walking on Air, I found that I preferred the idea of this book, to its execution. The folklore associated with the lunar calendar - indeed, the diversity of calendar types - is a fascinating topic, and a comparison of the many descriptions given by different peoples to the same month could be quite informative. Unfortunately, Calendar Moon felt rather random to me, with Belting's free-verse narrative making little impression - glossing over the various month names, but providing no context in which to make sense of the information presented. This would have been a stronger project, I think, if it had concentrated on a limited number of cultures, following their moon-names through the year. It also would have benefited, given the fact that it is an exploration of lunar months, from some other kind of arrangement, rather than a "traditional" solar one. As it is, I can understand why it has slipped into obscurity. ( )