Review by Booklist Review
A little boy visiting adult family friends in the city languidly listens to the "TICK-TOCK" of the clock and tunes out the "blah blah" of grown-up teatime conversation. After a long day, Lewis and his mother catch a bus home to the country. When a flat tire strands the passengers alongside a field, the child, out of sheer boredom, decides to put down his handheld gaming device and explore the surroundings. Keenly interested in and attuned to the nighttime chorus, Lewis hears "beetles BUZZ and critters ZIP." The child claps his hands as "fish SPLISH and SPLASH in time to the creek's burbling music." Han's spare, poetic text offers a sensory-rich soundscape: "SCURRY," "CREAAAK," "HOOT HOOT, HOOT." In the striking black-and-white, hand-drawn and -painted illustrations, onomatopoeic words and sound effects pop up in primary colors, from the loud candy-apple red "BRUMMM" and "BEEEEP!" of the bus to the bucolic green "CHIRR CHIRR" of grasshoppers. Unexpected sources of joy are revealed to be close at hand--and ear--for those who pay attention: "The songs of the night play in Lewis's head all the way home." This well-orchestrated, harmonious celebration of the sounds of nature hits all the right notes.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Horn Book Review
There are sounds all around young Lewis as he waits for his mom to finish a visit with other grownups in the noisy city ("TICK-TOCK" "CRUNCH!" "HONK!"). But it's the "POP!" sound of their now-flattened bus tire on the way back to their home in the country that gives Lewis a chance to discover the wondrous sounds of nature. Though he is bored at first, when "he listens to the sounds around him...the more he hears. And the more he wants to see." So off he goes exploring in the field next to the roadway, led by a firefly under a "moon-bright sky." There the "beetles BUZZ and critters ZIP," "nighttime creatures RUSTLE," and "fish SPLISH and SPLASH" until "the night sounds become a song." When their bus ride home resumes, Lewis contentedly plays the new songs in his head. Han's simple onomatopoeia-filled text and accompanying color-coded sound effects in the illustrations will draw in young listeners. Her soft, detailed hand-drawn paintings are luminous; rendered mainly in grayscale, they reflect the moon's glow and feature pops of color for all the noisemakers. A varied page design complements the liveliness of the narrative, as does Lewis's visible amazement ("CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!") throughout his excursion. This joyful celebration of and appreciation for the music of nature will leave readers repeating "CROAK CROAK," "FLITTER," "FLUTTER," "CHIRR CHIRR" too. Cynthia K. RitterJuly/August 2025 p.71 (c) Copyright 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
In this Australian import, a boy discovers magic in the soundscape of a starry, summer night. Eager to go home, Lewis colors listlessly while his mother has tea at her friend's house. His boredom follows him on the bus ride home until a flat tire forces the passengers to disembark. Softly textured compositions, filled with pattern and detail, are rendered in black and white. Warm colors highlight the objects, flora, and fauna that are making noise and the words identifying the sounds--the "WHOOSH!" of an orange curtain catching the breeze, the "CRUNCH!" of Mom biting into a chocolate chip cookie--leading to ever-changing, captivating scenes. Against the quiet of a starlit black sky and a pastoral setting, a firefly encircled in yellow catches the boy's eye and ear with its "ZZZZZZ." He follows the insect, climbing over a fence and walking through a glade of trees until he comes to a creek. All the while he notices the sounds of leaves rustling, frogs croaking, and water burbling. As the author describes it, "The night sounds become a song." Sonorous sentences and compelling images capture the enchantment of a natural nocturnal setting and a child's wonder at experiencing it through multiple senses--perhaps for the first time. Lewis and his mother have skin the white of the page; other characters are depicted in various shades. Mesmerizing--and sure to inspire listeners to attend to the symphonies in their own environments.(Picture book. 3-6) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
