Review by New York Times Review
Pinkney, who won a Caldecott Medal last year for "The Lion and the Mouse," brings a similar sumptuous, color-saturated aesthetic to this reimagining of the familiar bedtime lullaby, here expanded by a few verses from its most well-known version. A pleasingly expressive chipmunk - why is this rodent's particular cuteness overlooked in children's books? - stars in a free-form journey from woodland to dreamland, traveling at one point in a flying boat. His trajectory is confusing, but children are likely to view it as just another one of night's mysteries. STARS By Mary Lyn Ray. Illustrated by Marla Frazee. 40 pp. Beach Lane Books. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 2 to 6) Does anyone illustrate the facial expressions, postures and movements of children with the same gloriously authentic exuberance as Marla Frazee ("The Seven Silly Eaters," "Everywhere Babies")? Here, a star takes many forms - in the night, on a wand, as a snowflake or in the wilds of a young imagination. Well matched, Ray ("Mud," "Red Rubber Boot Day") grounds her text in the everyday experiences of young children. "A star is how you know it's almost night," she explains. "And the dark that comes doesn't feel so dark." LITTLE OWL'S NIGHT Written and illustrated by Divya Srinivasan. 32 pp. Viking. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 3 to 5) This exceptional first book by Srinivasan, a talented illustrator - her animations can be seen in the film "Waking Life" and her illustrations in The New Yorker - follows Little Owl during his nighttime explorations. How does the night end? Little Owl asks his mama. Little Owl's world, depicted in mossy greens and mushroom browns set dramatically against a black backdrop, is a romantic landscape of fireflies and nocturnal perambulations. Watch out, parents: this bedtime tale may even convert children who are afraid of the dark into adventuresome night owls. THE MAN IN THE MOON Written and illustrated by William Joyce. 56 pp. Atheneum. $17.99. (Picture book; ages 4 to 8) With the aura of an established classic, the first volume in Joyce's long-anticipated series, "The Guardians of Childhood," is worth the wait. And what a brilliant concept! The hero, MiM, or the Man in the Moon, is just the first beloved figure of childhood lore to get his own tale - the Sandman, the Tooth Fairy and Jack Frost are to follow. With lots of detail in its gold-flecked blues, the lavish illustration will set 6-year-old minds ticking, and though the King of Nightmares makes an appearance, this is a story primarily about sweet. MY NAME IS MINA By David Almond. 300 pp. Delacorte Press. $15.99. (Middle grade/young adult; ages 9 to 12) "My name is Mina and I love the night," begins this prequel of sorts to Almond's acclaimed 1998 novel "Skellig"; it tells the story of the neighbor and friend of that earlier book's hero. Wildly imaginative, fantastical, occasionally maddening but mostly engrossing, "My Name Is Mina" is a novel for dark-eyed girls who love nothing better than to scribble furiously in their journals, as Mina often does. The home-schooled and somewhat lonely Mina is a perceptive, fiercely curious, and defiant but sensitive girl who will surely prove a heroine for many. PAMELA PAUL ONLINE A slide show of this week's illustrated books at nytimes.com/books.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [October 16, 2011]
Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* This debut picture book gets it all just right. The story, while familiar, is executed deftly and with heart, and the crisp graphic elements of the artwork juxtapose well against the pretty prose. Little Owl, with his big, big eyes and his itty-bitty wings, is having a wonderful night as he flits between snails and stars. He watches an opossum family trek along and a skunk eating berries. Night is Little Owl's playground, but inevitably the sun must come up, and when the bats come flying home, he asks his mother to tell him again how the night ends. The moon and stars fade to ghosts. . . . Spiderwebs turn to silver threads. . . . Moonflowers close and morning glories open. The sky brightens from black to blue, blue to red, red to gold, she says, as the velvet blacks and foggy grays of the night slowly lighten to the colors of a breaking day. Cleverly, Srinivasan has turned the bedtime story upside down: now that the sun is out, it's time for sleep. Little ones who have enjoyed picking out the foxes, bears, and bunnies as the night wears on may find their own eyes closing just when Little Owl's do.--Cooper, Ilene Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
There's a surfeit of books about going to bed, but fewer about the beauty of night after all the humans have gone to sleep. In her debut, Srinivasan explores this world through the character of Little Owl, a mite of a bird with enormous green eyes. "Little Owl visited his friend the raccoon. As they sat in the clover, fog rolled in and hovered just overhead." There's no thread joining the events of Little Owl's pleasant evening; he thinks about showing his friend Bear the moon, but Bear doesn't wake up. Fox says hello, but doesn't stay. "Tell me again how night ends," Little Owl asks his mother. "The moon and stars fade to ghosts," she tells him. "Spiderwebs turn to silver threads." The story's chief virtue is its graceful, balletic prose; the artwork's crisp edges and cold greens and blacks, by contrast, have a polished, commercial feel-a Mary Blair vibe in a Photoshop era. It's a provocative inversion of the classic bedtime story, and a solid first outing. Srinavasan's message is that night is a delightful place, and that's useful knowledge for small children. Ages 3-5. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-Little Owl-almost overly cute, with huge green eyes-loves the night forest. He flutters around and observes the activities of his nocturnal neighbors. White-faced possums waddle by, bright-eyed beavers chomp on trees against the backdrop of the round moon, crickets chirp, frogs croak, and Little Owl takes it all in. Eventually he returns home, where Mama tells him his favorite story: how night becomes day. "The moon and stars fade to ghosts.the sky brightens from black to blue, blue to red, red to gold.." However, Little Owl does not hear or see it; he is fast asleep. Many young listeners will meet the same pleasant fate by way of this eye-catching, lilting, and reassuring book.-Susan Weitz, formerly at Spencer-Van Etten School District, Spencer, NY (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
