K-Gr 2--This starts like many bedtime stories: There's a bright star in the sky and a white boy named Clyde decides to wish on it. Dejected that his wish doesn't immediately come true, he goes to sleep until the very star he wished on visits his bedroom window and starts to make a wish on him! From there, the writing style shifts into Daywalt's signature humor, as Clyde tries to guess what the star might have wished for. Finally, the star and Clyde discover that both of them had wished for a friend. The ending, while sweet, feels a little abrupt, perhaps because of a mashup of two writing styles that is not entirely cohesive. The early pacing and plot development is suitable for preschoolers, while the writing style ("Don't judge me! I'm not the weirdo climbing in people's windows!") seems aimed at an elementary audience. Tying it together is Idle's dream-like pencil art, rendered in deep purple tones, a perfect fit for the bedtime story plot. VERDICT This entertaining friendship tale is a solid choice for a mixed-age read-aloud.--Jessica Ko, Los Angeles P.L.

Everyone knows that children can wish on stars, but did you know stars also wish on little children? Clyde often makes wishes, but one night Star enters his room with her own wish, which he must guess in order to grant it. It's not a game of checkers, a two-person tent, a Frisbee, or walkie-talkies. All of those things, Star explains, need a second person. Finally, Clyde realizes that Star wished for a friend, which is what he has also been wanting. The ending, although both predictable and somewhat overdone, is nonetheless sweet. And while the tone of the story is overall a bit dark (Clyde and Star don't speak to each other very kindly at times, and it is missing Daywalt's trademark humor), it is still a work of art. It is sumptuously illustrated in twilight shades of plum and violet with Idle's recognizable soft, gently curving swoops and preciously rounded children, and the luminous glow that Star emits on each page is spellbinding.

A boy gets an unusual payoff after wishing on a star. Sitting outside one night, Clyde notices a lone star in the sky. He recites the "Star light, star bright" incantation and makes a wish. Disappointed when it doesn't come true, he returns home. But later, while he's asleep, the star he'd wished on sneaks into his bedroom and makes a wish on him! Startled awake, Clyde wonders how to grant Star's wish. He shares some ideas (and actual objects) with her: a game of checkers, tent camping, tossing a Frisbee, and walkie-talkies. Star likes them, but they're not her wishes; Clyde confides there's no one to enjoy them with--and wonders if perhaps Star had wished for a friend. No one will be surprised at what Clyde next confesses to Star. The pair winds up playing together and becoming besties. This is a sweet but thin and predictable story about making friends. Still, readers will appreciate meeting feisty, celestial Star. The author reaches for humor using colloquialisms ("freaked out"), and kids will like the comfortable familiarity that develops between the cheery protagonists. The colored-pencil illustrations are rendered in a limited palette of mostly dark blues and purples, appropriate to the nighttime setting. Star is a luminous, pale yellow with a white topknot and has a star-dappled aura around her. Purple-pj'd Clyde wears bunny slippers and presents White. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Nice enough, but its twinkle is on the faint side. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

After wishing a "secret wish" on a single star in the sky, tan-skinned Clyde goes to bed, only to be startled awake by the very same star, now in his bedroom and wishing on him. Pale, radiant Star defies gravity and has a sparkly, multihued aura, but otherwise resembles a human kid in both outfit (footie pj's) and attitude ("Jeez! You have to scream like that?... You completely freaked me out!"). When Clyde is informed that he has the power to grant Star's wish, he has to discern what the secret desire is--and, following a series of vignettes set against deep purple tones that evoke the wee hours, it's eventually revealed that both characters have yearned and wished for the same thing: a friend. Though the dialogue can be long-winded, and the sum-up (the two "were never ever lonely again") seems a touch dubious, Daywalt (The Day the Crayons Quit) succeeds in lightening the heavy topic of loneliness with plenty of breezy banter. The real magic is in colored-pencil artwork by Idle (the Flora and Her Feathered Friends series), which has the visual drama and framing of classic animation, as well as a captivating celestial protagonist, who floats through the air with gymnastic nimbleness. Ages 4--8. (Aug.)