How to Catch a Star

Written & illustrated by Oliver Jeffers

Part of the The Boy series

A boy's quest to catch a star leads to unexpected discoveries.

5.6/7 Bookroo experts·4.2/5 Goodreads · 8,287 ratings

32 pages· 378 words· Est. 3 min read-aloud

$19.99Save 5%

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Bookroo's summary

A young boy dreams of capturing a star, trying everything from climbing trees to launching a paper rocket. As his hopes wane, he discovers that sometimes the stars we seek are closer than we think. Join him on a whimsical journey of perseverance and friendship, where the unexpected becomes a guiding light.

From the publisher

From the illustrator of the #1 smash hit The Day the Crayons Quit comes a story about wishing, persevering, and reaching for the stars.

Once there was a boy, and that boy loved stars very much. So much so that he decided to catch one of his very own. But how? Waiting for them to grow tired from being up in the sky all night doesn’t work. Climbing to the top of the tallest tree? No, not tall enough. The boy has a rocket ship . . . but it is made of paper and doesn’t fly well at all. Finally, just when the boy is ready to give up, he learns that sometimes things aren’t where, or what, we expect them to be.

Oliver Jeffers offers a simple, childlike tale of reaching for the stars, and emerging with a friend.

At a glance

Format
Pages: 32
Words: 378
Reading age: 3–7
Audience: Picture
Lexile: AD480L

Themes & topics

Books about wishes Books about self-discovery Books about coping with failure Books about hard work Books about stars

Inside the book

A peek between the covers

What readers & critics say

Reviews

5.6

out of 7

5.8

“How to Catch a Star is a delightful book about a little, unnamed boy who dreams of--you guessed it--catching a star. The book has some great humor, for example, the wishful boy thinks of using his rocket, but that wouldn't work because "it ran out of petrol last Tuesday when he flew to the moon." The boy catches a star in the end, but it's not what readers might expect. I think it's particularly interesting that the boy's name is never given, but that allows readers to substitute their own name into the story--not a bad thing at all.”

Lemony Snickers

Trusted reviewer

For readers who can't stop at one