Display: Light Vs. Dark

The King Who Banned the Dark
By Emily Haworth-Booth
New York: Sterling Children's Books, 2019. Picture Book.

When a prince becomes a king he decides to ban the dark completely. At first, everyone celebrates. But before long, no one can sleep and the exhausted citizens are ready to revolt. Can the people help the King face his fears, turn off the lights, and see that you can't appreciate the light without having the dark, too? --Editor

The Dark and the Light
Written by Kerstin Hau
Illustrated by Julie Volk and David Henry Wilson
Zürich: NorthSouth Books, Inc., 2019. Picture Book.

Loveable Shaggy lives in the land of darkness. He is lonely. Softhearted Sparkle lives in the land of light. She is lonely. One day they both go to the gray-blue border between their countries and find that life is light and dark and every color imaginable. --Publisher

Dark on Light
Written by Dianne White
Illustrated by Felicita Sala
New York: Beach Lane Books, 2022. Picture Book.

As night falls, a trio of siblings stumble upon some of nature's hidden nighttime beauty, including timid fawns, blossoming lavender, silent owls, and many more wonders of the night. --Editor

Turn Off That Light!
Written by John Crossingham
Illustrated by Steve Wilson
Toronto, ON; Berkeley, CA: Owlkids Books, 2015. Picture Book.

Hedgehog just wants to get some sleep. So, please, won't you stop turning on the light?

Light
By Jane Breskin Zalben
New York: Dutton Children's Books, 2007. Picture Book.

Inspired by a sixteenth-century midrash (a legend based on a biblical text)...by Rabbi Isaac Luria of Safed (1534-1572). --Editor

Tiny T. Rex and the Vey Dark Dark
Written by Jonathan Stutzman
Illustrated by Jay Fleck
San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books, 2020. Picture Book.

Tiny T. Rex and his friend Pointy are planning a campout in the backyard, but they are both worried that the dark will be altogether too dark, so they plan on bringing a night light with them--but when the night light does not work they bravely open their eyes and discover the stars above. --Editor

Comments

Funny Farm by Mark Teague 2009

There are things I liked about Mark Teague's newest book, Funny Farm , and things I didn't like. Where should I start? I'll do the "didn'ts" first. The illustrations show animals personified. Well, some of the animals are. The main characters, Edward, and his farm family relatives, all dogs, are humanized. They stand upright, do farm chores, eat at a table, wear clothes, knit (yes, with paws) and sleep in beds. Most everybody else on and around the farm, who are also animals, act like animals. They are outside, roll in mud, live in the barn, and require care from their owners. It struck me the most on the page spread where there are pigs playing in puddle in the rain and Edward, a black and white boxer, watches from inside the house. I thought "You're a dog! Go play with them!" But, alas, he can't, seeing as how he goes through his entire visit to the farm wearing a suit and red bow tie. Another picture that bothered me was the maple syrup pa...

Review: Super Boba Cafe

Super Boba Café By Nidhi Chanani New York: Amulet Books, 2023. Comics. 215 pages. 14-year-old Aria is excited to spend her summer in San Francisco getting quality time with her Nainai. She loves helping at her grandmother's Super Boba Café. But she can't help but notice that her grandmother is acting strange and secretive. She refuses to let Aria into the kitchen at all and she disappears at the same time each night without telling Aria where she goes. Meanwhile, Aria is eager to drum up more business for Super Boba Café. She gets a major windfall when the shop cat, Bao, surprises them by having kittens, and Aria realizes this is a major social media opportunity. She knows this will help Nainai's shop, but she is apprehensive to get back on social media after a terrible cyberbullying experience she had back home. As the shop starts to get busier, Nainai is more and more anxious about her secret project. This prompts Aria to investigate with help from her Nainai's neighb...

Review: The Mixed-Up Owl

The Mixed-Up Owl Written by Marzena Sowa Illustrated by Joanna Lorno New York : Hippo Park, 2025. Picture Book. When Owl can't sleep at night, he heads off to see if any forest animals can help him understand why, and even more so, how to fix it! Unfortunately, all the animals Owl runs into at night are asleep and all the animals he meets during the day are too rude or too busy to answer him. Will Owl give up or will a chance meeting with a grumpy hedgehog provide all the solutions Owl was looking for? The premise of an owl trying to stay awake during the day because all the other animals around him do is very fun. Kids who know that owls are nocturnal will get a kick out of Owl's confusion and be quick to try to tell him what's going on. Readers who don't know many facts about owls (or nocturnal animals in general) will get a brief introduction to the different ways animals sleep. The illustrations are charming, especially cute Owl and his expressive body langua...

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