Review by New York Times Review
I know A family who regularly skinny-dip in the Atlantic after the sun has set. I also know a family who live in a gated community, in a house stocked with more guns than they have hands to fire their guns. I feel lucky to have been born to a mother who runs outside at the first sound of thunder, greeting each storm. From her, I learned to love the night, the ocean, the storm, but even so, at times an uneasiness creeps in with the dark. Fear rears its head and I wonder, who taught us to be scared? Who told us night is a fearful realm? "MONSTER is my friend." Emily Tetri's heroine, Tiger, makes this bold statement to her family in the graphic-novel-style tiger VS. NIGHTMARE (Macmillan, 64 pp., $17.99; ages 6 to io). Monster, in nightly bedtime battles, goes head-to-head with nightmares that come for Tiger. When Monster's powers begin to fail, Tiger steps up, taking on a nightmare by denouncing its reality. But real or not, nightmares affect us, and so the true victory in Tetri's book comes in unlikely collaborations and creativity in the face of terror. It comes from befriending a "monster." WHICH MAKES me wonder, how can we stop fear before it ever blooms? An answer exists in three gorgeous picture books that celebrate the chaos, calm and color of night. Kitty Crowther's stories of the NIGHT (Gecko, 64 pp., $17.99; ages 4 and up) IS a blissful release into the world of wonder. I would like to give this book as a gift to every child, every person in my life. Its magic is first evident in its revealing dedication: "For Sara Donati, who slept one night at my house, and dreamed that I made a book called 'Short Stories of the Night' with a pink cover and a handwritten title." Crowther has made Donati's dream come true. This magical totem of a book bursts with beauty, absurdity, generosity and the surprise of the natural world. Crowther makes new myths as she presents a mama bear who tells her child three bedtime stories. In one story, the Night Guardian, with her small gong and illuminated hair, tells Earth's creatures (fish, ants, mushrooms, ermines and humans) when it is time for bed, uniting all life in the magical, unconscious hours of dream and possibility. In another, Zhora, a brave girl who hopes to find the darkest blackberry, is rewarded for her courage: a berry as large as her tiny body and a new friend in Jacko Molio the bat. The third story introduces bearded old Bo, who lives in an abandoned owl nest, where perhaps the owls' nocturnal tendencies have rubbed off on him. Bo is restless. He heads "out into the woods to look for some sleep." Bo's friend Otto, the poet and otter, suggests Bo might enjoy a swim. "It's far too chilly." So Otto advises, "Go in with your coat on then." I hail this triumphant moment where joyful silliness trumps the chokehold of "safety" that flattens some children's literature. Bo has a lovely swim and even finds one of Otto's stone poems under the water. Satisfied and delighted, blessings now counted - swimming, night, bed, poetry, good friends - sleep comes easily to Bo. Crowther's book has all the delightful strangeness of Margaret Wise Brown and Garth Williams's classic "Little Fur Family," but "Stories of the Night" takes place in a hand-wrought, colored-pencil forest made resplendent with rich tones, particularly a shocking pink, so warm and cheerful it fills the woods with joy. An opening illustration shows a bear mother and child returning from a sunset stroll. The darkness is visible on them, graphite fingerprints that feel human, considered and kind. In the distance, their cabin glows with the warmth of the living, while all around them we find this pink - not the Pepto of a blinged-out princess, but rather a regal pink of sunsets, cozy fires, pinebranch tents and a sleeping mushroom family; the pink of wonder, of forests and grateful nights without fear. IN A BIG MOONCAKE FOR LITTLE STAR (Little, Brown, 40 pp., $17.99; ages 3 to 7), Grace Lin brings us her first picture book in eight years, after middle-grade books including the Newbury Honor-winning "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon." Little Star's mother sets a freshly baked mooncake out to cool on the night sky. The rich darkness of the book's pages is cut by the glorious gold of the stars and the child's bright smile as she munches down a full mooncake every month. Her crumbs become astral bodies. The new moon arrives when her nighttime snack is finally consumed. Time to bake another cake! Lin takes what's large and perhaps overwhelming - planetary motions - and translates the scientific into story. Our child protagonist has a hand in the mechanism of the universe. If that's not empowering, if that's not fear-busting, I don't know what is. ROXANE MARIE GALLIEZ and Seng Soun Ratanavanh's gentle, gloriously colorful and imaginative time for bed, miyuki (Princeton Architectural Press, 32 pp., $17.95; ages 4 to 8) also deals with cycles - the cycles a child might pass through on her way to sleep. While this is a bedtime book, it also honors the schedules children set for themselves before bed. Miyuki's grandfather, wise and patient, allows Miyuki time for her own rituals of readying body and mind. He confirms his granddaughter's agenda, rather than supplanting it with his own. Together they gather the snails, prepare for the Dragonfly Queen's arrival with water carrots, turnips and radishes, cover the cats in a cozy blanket, dance, bathe and of course, most important, enjoy a bedtime story. Thus, we grow compassion. We steer clear of hurry, stress, fear and all its attendant reactions: cruelty, isolation and control. Trusting in the cycles of nature, the wisdom of children and the world of wonder is central to all three of these beautiful books. They are lap-size portals to worlds where there is no fear, even in the face of night, mystery and the glorious unknown. Samantha hunt is the author of novels including "Mr. Splitfoot" and "The Seas," which was recently republished with an introduction by Maggie Nelson.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [July 11, 2019]
Review by Booklist Review
Tiger has a monster under her bed, but she's not scared; in fact, her monster helps her keep the nightmares away. Every night while Tiger sleeps, inky, shadowy nightmares creep close, and Monster wards them off with a glare, a growl, or a shoo. That is, until one night when an especially powerful nightmare rears its ugly, shrouded, skull-like head, and Tiger wakes up puzzled. Where was Monster? Tetri makes fantastic use of color and motion in her mostly visual narrative creepy figures in dusky blues, blacks, and grays swirl around Tiger's bed at nighttime, and after Tiger and her monster learn to take on the nightmares together, the warm, golden colors of daytime edge their way toward the borders of the page to push the aqueous blacks away. Best of all, resourceful and brave Tiger rescues herself: her parents are supportive, but she solves her problems on her own. With an empowering message, beautifully dynamic artwork, and an invitingly open format, this is a natural choice for kids making the transition from picture books to graphic novels.--Sarah Hunter Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Tiger's sweet-tempered parents indulge her talk about the hungry monster who lives underneath her bed ("It loves curry!" she tells them). But Monster is real, and after they play board games and Tiger goes to sleep, it earns its dinner by chasing away Tiger's nightmares. One night, an extra-horrible nightmare with a bleached skull proves too much for Monster. The next night is no better, nor the next. With Monster's loyal support, Tiger confronts the nightmare herself. It's a story about fear, both the way it can paralyze ("Nope," says Monster, hunched miserably under Tiger's covers) and the way it can be overcome ("You're in my head! You're not real!" Tiger yells at the specter). Newcomer Tetri's pencil-and-watercolor panels capture Tiger's engaging, cublike features and daytime world in warm shades of gold and olive, while the epic battles that rage at night wash across the page in tidal sweeps of gray and blue. The Jetsons-style sci-fi setting adds another dimension of fun. Seamless visual storytelling and an impressive emotional range make this a notable debut. Ages 6-10. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-In this endearing graphic novel, an anthropomorphic tiger cub's best friend is the monster under her bed. Tiger's parents think Monster is imaginary, but every evening, they let Tiger bring Monster dinner. Monster eats, the two of them play games, and when Tiger goes to sleep, Monster scares the nightmares away and makes sure the little cub gets a good night's rest. But when a nightmare that even Monster can't handle appears, Tiger has to learn to face her fears herself. The characters are adorable, and Tiger's world is original and futuristic, with flying vehicles and industrial-style buildings. The graphics are in gorgeous full color, with an almost blurred watercolor effect, beautifully conveying both delightfully creepy nightmare scenes and vibrant daytime illustrations. An image of intrepid little Tiger staring up at the nightmare, a creature with a shadowy body and a horned skull, is especially striking. The use of panels of a multitude of sizes enriches the narrative. The speech balloons are particularly well done, adding dimension to every mood or situation. The vocabulary is approachable-kids will enjoy reading this on their own or with an adult. VERDICT Tetri has crafted a sweet, uplifting tale of best friends, imagination, bravery, and teamwork. Highly recommended for fans of Lorena Alvarez's Nightlights and anyone who has, or remembers having, nighttime terrors.-Kelley Gile, Cheshire Public Library, CT © Copyright 2018. 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 Horn Book Review
Tiger's friend Monster was sent to scare her as a baby, but instead they became friends. Since a monster has to scare something, it scares away Tiger's nightmares...until one night a very strong, very scary one gets through. A tale of supportive friendship and common childhood phobias is clearly told for young readers in graphic-novel panels with loosely rendered, emotive pencil and watercolor illustrations. (c) Copyright 2019. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A tiger, with some unusual help, fights off a nightmare.Tiger's parents don't quite believe that the reason she carries extra curry or tacos from the supper table to her bedroom is because she has a monster under her bed, but it's true. Monster was supposed to scare her long ago, but instead they play together nightly. Then, while Tiger sleeps, Monster scares away Tiger's horned, multieyed, centipedelike nightmaresuntil a nightmare with a long-jawed white skull and a changeable, smoky body arrives. It conquers Monster and reaches Tiger. From now on, Tiger and Monster must work together. The plans they implement are brilliant and brave, and their hard-won victory (it takes a few tries) couldn't be more triumphant, relieving, or empowering. Compositions range from full-bleed spreads to pages holding multiple sequential panels. Using watercolors and pencils, Tetri creates one color-world of inky blues (Monster; nighttime) and another of oranges and yellows (Tiger; daytime). The meanings of each color-world hold nuance and complexity: The nightmares are of the blue world, but so are coziness and small, dear Monster; Tiger's victory explodes with warm colors like dawn, but she could only achieve it at night. Rich details enhance the setting inconspicuously: Tiger's parents, also tigers, run a repair shop for flying cars; one parent is Dad while the other is of undesignated gender.A visual and emotional symphony. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
