The Night Box, written by Louise Greig, reviewed by Klaudia Janek

Student Reviewer: Coby C.
Summary: “The Night Box” by Louise Greig and Ashling Lindsay is a high quality and creative picture book with a good message. This beautifully illustrated book would make a wonderful read-aloud book, teaching readers not to fear the dark by presenting a much more comforting angle. The colored pencil illustrations by Ashling Lindsay complement this poem perfectly, capturing the atmosphere of the different times of day with deft use of color and bringing out the positives in these aspects of the night. Readers see the animals that come out at night, including foxes, owls, moles and more, and learn to appreciate the qualities that make night unique and interesting, such as the calm quiet it brings about and the beautiful night sky that serves as the home of wandering swans. Ashling Lindsay’s art style is playful while still capturing the light and mood of each scene perfectly. Presenting a unique, surreal, and imaginative concept, the plot of the book is also commendable.

Straight Talk for Librarians: “The Night Box” is very well-written with a very poetic structure in the imagery and the way line breaks are used. The book presents higher-level sentence structure to young readers, making it ideal for libraries and classroom settings as it introduces readers to these aspects of literature. To prevent from being too monotonous, the text is broken up periodically by a larger font “Whoosh!” adding energy to the overall text. The themes covered are relevant and the message to not fear the dark, and instead appreciate the unique atmosphere and qualities of the night, is a very important message for young readers, teaching open-mindedness. In conclusion, the book is simply wonderfully realized, with excellent quality illustrations, presenting an imaginative concept, and well written, it is a fantastic novel to use in libraries, classrooms, or even at home.