Night at the Fair

by Donald Crews, Donald Crews (Illustrator)

Overview

It's time! The gates are open, the rides are spinning-come to the fair! Nighttime at the fair is magic with Caldecott Honor-winning author-artist Donald Crews. The sky goes dark and the colored lights begin to flash and sparkle. There are games to play and treats to eat. From the top of the Ferris wheel you can see where you've been-and where you have yet to go. So much to do and see. Hurry!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780688114831
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	04/14/1998
Edition description:	1 ED
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	34,797
Product dimensions:	11.88(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.25(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Donald Crews is the renowned creator of many celebrated children's books, including the Caldecott Honor Books Freight Train and Truck. He and his wife, Ann Jonas, live in New York's Hudson River Valley.

Donald Crews is the renowned creator of many celebrated children's books, including the Caldecott Honor Books Freight Train and Truck. He and his wife, Ann Jonas, live in New York's Hudson River Valley.

Editorial Reviews

Step right up! Crews "(Freight Train") gives young readers an open-ended ticket to the glittery goings-on after dark at the county fair in his energetic new picture book. In Crews's fair, clusters of food stands and game booths festoon the midway, and Crews perfectly captures the glow of kaleidoscopic candy-colored lights against a black night sky. Bold signs announce Funnel Cakes, Corn Dogs and Win Big Prizes to passersby. In several expansive spreads, kidstheir faces flushed with excitementride the carousel, giant Ferris wheel and the whirler, which twirl and twinkle like gigantic fireflies in the dark. Crews's text is minimal but captures the thrill of a child ("And now,/ on to the/ RIDES!"). The busy scenes filled with a rainbow of people eating, laughing and carrying stuffed animal prizes will have readers longing for the warm nights of summer and the next county fair.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Opening with the graphic signage of a finger pointing "THIS WAY IN," Crews invites readers to join the crowd streaming through the gates. His prose is spare and energetic, perfect for initiating newcomers to the dynamic pleasures of the fairthe food, the games, the rides. Double-page paintings done in watercolor and gouache offer snapshots of the event bursting with brilliant carnival colors. Lights dance against the pitch black summer night. Observant readers will be tickled to see the author's rendition of himself strolling the midway. The best ride of all, the giant Ferris wheel, stands glowing in the night. The next page is a breathtaking view of the entire fair. "WOW!" is the only text needed. At last, another finger points "THIS WAY OUT," and the crowd files into the shadows. This subject has many sensory connections, and Crews so ably captures them that one can almost smell the food and hear the hucksters beckoning. Clean, large type, much of it white on black, will be accessible to even beginning readers. Urban and rural children alike will revel in the excitement of a "Night at the Fair." Lisa S. Murphy, formerly at Dauphin County Library System, Harrisburg, PA

School Library Journal

Crews ("Shortcut", 1992, etc.) uses, to great effect, the contrast of the night sky and the gaudy lights of typical fair amusements in his picture book of very few words but very kinetic images. Readers come through the main gate to a variety of games, rides, and food stands. "So many choices," acknowledges the text: Among the rides shown in magnificent double-page spreads are a carousel, the whirl-o-rama, and of course, the ferris wheel. From the top of that, the whole fair is spread out like gems on velvet. All the cheesy games and foods that ever mesmerized fair-goers are lovingly delineated, and the amusement rides themselves are gouache and watercolor masterpieces. Alert children will note that the artist, seen in a photograph on the book jacket, has painted himself into one of the scenes. This evocative book could be paired to nice effect with Elisha Cooper's sunny "Country Fair" (1997).

Kirkus Reviews