Review by Booklist Review
A dad attempts to accommodate competing requests from his two youngsters for a scary and not-too-scary bedtime story by telling them a tale about two children walking through a dark forest. Initially, the story's mood is set for the older child: it opens with the spookiest, creepiest kind of dark, featuring creatures in bushes. When the younger child exclaims, Too scary! fireflies appear and the creatures turn out to be benevolent. An ominous shadow emerges, the children dash home, the shadow transforms into dad, and all is well. The story wavers between mildly scary and not-too-scary, enhanced by the illustrations, which balance dark atmospheric exterior scenes and brightly lit interior scenes. The children appear more worried than terrified and seem to be enjoying their adventure. While the dad tells the story as if it were two random children, it is actually his children pictured, creating a blending of fantasy and reality that might confuse younger listeners. Ultimately, a fun adventure that strikes just the right mark between goosebump-inducing and reassuring.--Enos, Randall Copyright 2017 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Papa has offered to read his children a bedtime story, and he's got his work cut out for him. Grace, the older child, wants something scary (she has a pretend magic wand as the last line of defense); little Walter, not so much. As the narration unfolds and the children imagine themselves in the tale, Papa keeps recalibrating to assuage both his offspring. The "spookiest, creepiest dark" that Grace savors is suddenly illuminated by friendly fireflies for Walter's sake; potentially scary animals turn out to be cuddly critters bedding down for the night. Murguia's (Princess! Fairy! Ballerina!) mixed-media pictures conjure up plenty of atmosphere, with moody browns, grays, and soft blacks punctuated by glowing eyes and eerie shafts of light. But while the premise is excellent and the story starts strong, Murguia doesn't seem to know how to resolve the narrative tug-of-war. The conclusion, in which the siblings team up to vanquish the shadowy threat of a story that seems stuck in scary mode, feels rushed and doesn't live up to the comedy of the preceding pages. Ages 3-5. Agent: Elena Giovinazzo, Pippin Properties. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-Papa offers to tell the kids a bedtime story. Grace, the brave older child, wants it to be creepy and scary. Younger Walter doesn't feel the same way. His sister assures him that all will be fine. She will have her wand with them for protection. Papa starts the story with the two children going for a walk in the forest on a dark night. This is a bit too scary for Walter, so Papa adds harmless fireflies. Unfortunately, they're not creepy enough for Grace, so her father introduces all kinds of other creatures. When footsteps and shadows enter the tale, Walter hopes Grace's wand will keep them away, but she is unsure about its ability to help. As the narrative progresses, the children's fear brings them closer together and their courage grows. It's difficult to find a bedtime story that is good for all ages, especially when one child wants it to be scary. This book does a good job of balancing gentle and slightly scary details. The background during the bedtime story is dark and muted. The illustrations of the children are bright enough to stand out against the murkiness. The contrasting text differentiates the characters' voices from the bedtime story their father is telling. The children's expressions are well portrayed, from happy to frustrated to somewhat frightened. Even the family dog gets in on the act. VERDICT This is a fun bedtime, or anytime, selection for young ones.-Barbara Spiri, Southborough Library, MA © Copyright 2017. 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
Its bedtime, which means storytime for big-sister Grace and little-brother Walter. Make it a scary story, Grace says to Papa, who begins: One night, two brave explorers and their dog were walking home through the forest. It was very, verydark. As the siblings enter the imaginary setting, Grace is eager for more, but Walter proclaims: Too scary! Papa introduces fireflies to brighten up the scene, a detail that delights Walter but dissatisfies Grace (Papa, fireflies are not scaryI want to see bears!). Papa continues the tale, fielding the childrens requests (demands?) as he goes. When the narrative gets a little too scary, even for Grace, the siblings, rewardingly, team up to fight their mutual fears. Murguias mixed-media illustrations (pencil, watercolor, gouache, and hand-painted tissue collage) reflect the shifting creepiness factor, alternating among shadowy gray (Graces preference), bluish-green (for Walter), and the reassuring yellow of the childrens bedroom with Papa there. The text, too, uses different fonts to easily differentiate between the main narrative (all in dialogue) and Papas story. An entertaining visual subplot involves the childrens cheerful dog and their grouchy-faced stuffed-animal owl, who comes alive in the story-world. elissa gershowitz (c) Copyright 2017. 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
Two siblings take charge of Papa's scary bedtime story in Murguia's sweet and chilling nighttime tale.As brown-skinned siblings Grace and Walter settle down for bed, Papa (also brown-skinned) offers to tell them a bedtime story. To Walter's dismay, Grace excitedly demands a scary story, and Papa begins with two brave siblings in a forest that is "very, very... / dark." When Walter exclaims that the dark is too scary, Papa's story shifts from the forest to a meadow alight with fireflies. After a moment, Grace insists that fireflies are not scary, and Papa's story turns againthe siblings now facing creatures hidden in the bushes. "Too scary!" Walter objects again, and Papa reveals that the creatures are a group of tired, furry animals settling down to sleep. But Grace still wants something scary, and as the story turns dark once again, both children must summon their courage to banish a shadowy monster and triumph over the story and their fear. Illustrations that adeptly transition between the creepy and cheerful sides of the story's nighttime world perfectly complement the equally nimble text. Directed by the children's input, the shifts from dark to light in Papa's voice and story tone are dynamically mirrored by similar shifts of palette and mood in the art. Fun and frisson in just the right balance. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
