The Night Box by Louise Greig - ADVISABLE

The Night Box by Louise Greig, illustrated by Ashling Lindsay. PICTURE BOOK. Clarion Books (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), 2017. $18. 9781328850935

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE.

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

In this very poetic text, a young boy and the world around him are getting ready for bed. Everything transitions very smoothly from day to evening and then when the boy gets to his room for the night he unlocks a box that slowly gathers the light and lets out darkness. 

This is the perfect book for kids scared of the dark. It is such a peaceful meditation on how nighttime is dark but not scary. In my first reading, I thought it was too slow and drawn out, but then on a second reading I realized that the pace is part of the effort to reduce anxiety about darkness. The art has a nordic oil painting look that is aesthetically pleasing for adults and soothing for kids. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher