Because… I promised Keefe something. And I’d like to keep that promise. But it’s hard to do that if you keep asking questions.”

Based on a 2007 online poll, the National Education Association listed the book as one of its "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children". [18] It was one of the "Top 100 Picture Books" of all time in a 2012 poll by School Library Journal. [19] Along with the lovely news that his recovery was still taking forever, Elwin had also let Keefe know that Sophie had apparently already gone to Nightfall, and that her family hadn’t been there. Ro snorted. “Wow, you really have it bad, don’t you? Nope, no need to deny it. It’s so obvious it’s actually adorable. Especially since she’s totally clueless about it. You know that, right?” Grady blew out a breath. “I think you’re forgetting that now’s really not a smart time for you to leave Havenfield. We have no idea how the Neverseen are going to respond when they discover what you’ve done to their storehouse. And you have your own army here—”Fine.” Keefe reached for the elixir. If that’s what it took to get Ro to Candleshade, he’d deal with it. The big thing with Sophie is how living with humans gave her a unique perspective on the world, but she's the only one whose perspective has changed. The bodyguards have a somewhat positive reaction to the idea of imprisoning all of humanity in one place, because, uh, holy shit? These are characters we're supposed to root for and sympathize with. And then you have them saying that a human prison is somewhat reasonable, or what human food/water is gross and that it's all polluted, etc., etc. Cannon created the illustrations in Stellaluna herself, painting the illustrations before she wrote the story. The art was created with Prismacolor wax-based pencils, as well as airbrushed Liquitex-brand acrylic paint. [4] [6]

a few of the characters had some really great growth in this book, i think. sophie's becoming more confident in herself and stepping into her role as leader, and fitz (i believe?) is working on his anger issues. keefe is still very broken and hurting (who wouldn't be?) but i think i'm seeing some healing happening. Am I not ashamed to say I have a crush on Tam and him defending her all the time is just grating on my every last nerve. It’ll be a lifetime of pain if you don’t listen to me,” Elwin corrected. He flashed a red orb around Keefe’s torso and squinted through his glasses. “Just like I thought. You’re worse today.” Cannon was interested in writing a story about bats because of the negative perceptions that many have of them, as well as because not many children's books featured them. She created the illustrations first, inspired by photographs of Gambian epauletted fruit bats. The art for the book was made with wax-based pencils, as well as airbrushed acrylic paint. These illustrations in particular were praised for their scientific accuracy, as well as for making the bats appealing.he meant what he said in his letter—and he meant it exactly the way you thought he did before you tried to talk yourself out of it.” And they never would be, until they stopped the Neverseen—which they’d have a much better chance of doing if they worked together. Yes, Keefe’s new abilities were probably scary—and his mom was absolutely going to try to exploit them. But there had to be a way to use his powers against her. SOPHIE WASN’T SURE HOW LONG she sat there staring blankly at her empty doorway. Could’ve been minutes. Could’ve been hours. It didn’t matter. No amount of time was going to quiet the chaos in her head. All it did was raise a whole lot of terrifying questions. Because even if Ro was right about Keefe’s feelings—and Sophie decided she wanted to see what would happen—this was so much bigger than just the two of them. Like… What would Grady and Edaline think? Sophie still didn’t know if she was actually allowed to date—much less date That Boy. And even if she was, there would surely be all kinds of annoying new rules and restrictions to deal with. Plus, Edaline would probably follow them around with a sappy, embarrassing smile, and Grady would make them sit through a series of horrifying Dad Talks. And what would her friends say when they found out? There’d been a time when Sophie had wondered if Biana had a crush on Keefe—and even though it seemed like Biana had gotten over it… what if she hadn’t? Better question: How would Fitz react? Keefe was Fitz’s best friend—and Fitz’s temper could be… challenging. The possibilities for drama were endless. Sophie’s insides twisted into knots on top of knots as she imagined the awkward conversations. And the stares. And the gossip. There would be So. Much. Gossip. She wanted to hide just thinking about it—and Keefe would probably love the attention. Did that prove they weren’t compatible? Or was she just looking for an excuse because she was scared? And why was she so scared? Keefe would honestly be… … … …a really awesome boyfriend. He was thoughtful. And supportive. And he could be incredibly sweet—when he was actually being serious instead of joking around with everybody. Though… maybe some of his jokes with her hadn’t just been teasing. Had some of it also been… flirting? If Ro were still there, she probably would’ve been nodding and shouting about the Great Foster Oblivion. And maybe she was right. Maybe Sophie had been too insecure to let herself see what was right in front of her. Or too distracted by her crush on Fitz. The last thought made her inner knots twist so much tighter. She’d liked Fitz for so long that she’d never even thought about liking someone else—and she was still trying to get over all of that. But… Did she want to risk missing out on something that might be… really great? Keefe’s face filled her mind, flashing his trademark smirk.” Curiously, stella translates to "star" and lune translates to "moon." Shannon Messenger has used similar references in the past, so it could be assumed that these latin roots hint at its origin.

ALSOOOOO (HEHE), y’KnOw when Sophie is in the Fitzter’s mind and she sees ✨herself✨, but a beautified, perfected version of herself??? And then she sees Keefe’s drawing of her…and it looks like her? Really her?Sophie then visits Lord Cassius, Keefe's father, to try to find a list of all the Forbidden Cities that his pathfinder has granted access to— and what possible countries/cities that Keefe might be in. Lord Cassius talks Sophie out of it, reasoning that there are too many possible cities and that Keefe has the ability to take care of himself. Sophie disagrees initially, but after seeing memories from Keefe’s childhood, eventually agrees. They then talk telepathically and Lord Cassius shows Sophie a hidden memory that reveals Lady Gisela’s secret ability as a Conjurer, and reveals that there is a third step to Stellarlune and that Lady Gisela was investigating Elysian. Fine,” she decided. “I’ll stop asking questions—if you stop trying to talk me out of going after him.” Grady gently pulled her closer. “I know you hate letting your friends take risks. But Keefe can handle himself—”