In the Small, Small Night

by Jane Kurtz, Rachel Isadora (Illustrator)

Overview

In the middle of the night the world can seem huge andfrightening, especially when you've just moved far from home. On Abena and Kofi's first night in America, it is late and it is dark and they are up worrying. What if a giant lizard or a slender-snouted crocodile crawled into their suitcases? What if the people in their new school laugh at them? What if they forget Grandmother and their cousins, now that they are an ocean away?

But Abena knows a secret to help them. It is a secret that can make the world and the night seem small again. She reaches for her new flashlight and turns it on. She says to her little brother, Kofi, "Pretend this is the moon. Close your eyes." And then she begins ...

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780066238142
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	01/04/2005
Edition description:	Ages 5 and up
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.25(d)
Lexile:	AD560L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Jane Kurtz knows a lot about moving. She was born in Portland, Oregon, but when she was two years old her parents moved their family to Ethiopia to work for the Presbyterian Church there. Jane Kurtz is the author of novels, picture books, and chapter books. After living in North Dakota (where she survived a natural disaster), Colorado, Illinois, and Kansas, she moved back to Portland, Oregon, where she now lives with her husband, the Reverend Leonard L. Goering, H.R.

Many children dream of becoming dancers, musicians, actors, and artists, but few have the opportunity, the skill, and the determination to live out those dreams. Rachel Isadora is the exception. When she was young, she wanted to be a ballerina—and she became one. And now she has firmly established herself in a second career as an artist with an impressive string of picture books, including Ben's Trumpet, a Caldecott Honor Book.

Born and raised in New York City, Rachel studied at the School of American Ballet (associated with the New York City Ballet) as a Ford Foundation scholarship student. She danced with the Boston Ballet until a foot injury forced her to consider another career: book illustration. "I had always drawn for my own entertainment," says Rachel, "but I'd never had any instruction, and I wasn't sure how to proceed. So I just took a collection of sketches-odds and ends on bits of paper-to the first editor who would see me. She suggested I do a book about what I knew best." The result was Max, published in 1976 and named an ALA Notable Book.

Since Max, Rachel has written and illustrated many other books, and has illustrated three books by her editor, Elizabeth Shub. When Rachel begins a new book, she first imagines the story through the pictures. I 'see' each illustration separately," she says. "I write a description of what I envision on each page; then I go over it with my editor and make revisions. Next I do the actual drawing, and finally I write the text."

Rachel Isadora lives in New York City with her two children. When she is not busy with her family, she spends most of her spare time drawing. "Work like this is a dancer's fantasy," she says. "Because ballet is so demanding, dancers' stage careers are short. They can only dream of going on and on forever. With art, I can go on and on, and for me it's the only work that compares in intensity and joy."

Editorial Reviews

Using stories she heard from a friend from Ghana, Kurtz weaves them into a lovely story about wisdom and perseverance. Abena, Kofi, and their family have moved to America from Ghana. Kofi, frightened of the new adventures ahead, turns to his sister: " 'I can't sleep,' Kofi says. 'What if we forget Grandmother and our cousins now that we live in America?' Abena pats his head, 'Don't worry. I'll help us remember.' " So she begins to soothe the fears of her younger brother, using traditional African folktales as her technique. With the sure cadence of a true teller, Abena opens with an Anansi tale that begins with Anansi lying awake worrying like Kofi. A second story, of turtle's determination to stay with his friend eagle, finally does the trick. When Abena confesses that she too is sometimes afraid, Kofi turns the stories' morals back to her. Isadora's vibrant illustrations, drenched in color, capture the African settings, the folkloric animals, and the love between brother and sister-and they complete the enchantment. (Picture book 7-12)

Kirkus Reviews