FICTION

As Night Falls: Creatures That Go Wild After Dark

by Donna Jo Napoli (text) & illus. by Felicita Sala
Random House Studio. Mar. 2023. 40p. Tr $18.99. ISBN 9780593374290.
COPY ISBN
K-Gr 3–A colorful, slightly spooky rumination on animals that go bump in the night and a child’s imagination. The bulk of the book focuses on the animal kingdom at night, from the tiniest things that glow in the dark to nocturnal owls and tigers that prowl for food, then returns to the bedroom where the imaginative element is at play. The gouache, watercolor, and ink illustrations are engaging, lush, and equally creative as the text: children will recognize the animals but be excited by the way the illustrations move and prowl like the creatures themselves. The opening is somewhat slow to hook readers, but then the prose builds beautifully in wave after wave. That may make this less useful at bedtime.
VERDICT This blue-hued picture book is a great read-aloud for animal lovers and kids who have enjoyed Where the Wild Things Are.
Reviewed by Aryssa Damron , Dec 22, 2023

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