Reading to my niece and nephew a lot has really given me a new appreciation for Children's books. They can be great stories in their own right. They are filled with art and wisdom and usually with heart. You can read them in 10 minutes or so. They are perfect for a busy life in many ways. Some are too simple and some are fit for all ages. I think I'm addicted to children's books and this little book is one of those reasons.

A young boy, Laszlo, is afraid of the dark, though it lives in his old, creaky house. While it spreads out in places such as the closet, behind the shower curtain, and across doors and windows at night, it mainly lives in the basement. In the morning, Laszlo will say hello to the dark at the basement door, hoping that if he does so the dark will not come to his room. La moraleja de la historia es hacernos ver que el miedo no solo es inevitable, si no NECESARIO. No debemos de enfrascarnos en superarlo, si no en entenderlo. In this beautifully constructed sentence, one envisions a seed cradled in the dark by the earth’s soil as if the earth were its mother, gently clutching its child. Captivating picture book for younger children that is sure to become a library essential in no time. A powerful narrative... evocatively illustrated. There's really no good reason not to have this on your shelves. -- Teach NurseryIn this sentence, the moon winked at the owl. Of course, the moon can’t wink because it is definitely an inanimate object. As well, clouds can’t wander. Wandering is when one walks or moves in a leisurely, casual, or aimless way. Clouds may seem like they wander, but of course they too are inanimate objects that float or travel where the wind moves them.

Daniel and Lisa’s nine-year-old son, Otto, perhaps unsurprisingly given his genetic makeup, understood all this very early. “Before he could talk,” says Handler, “we would go for a walk and I would say: ‘If I see a tree, I’m going to go crazy,’ and he would point at a tree and I would pretend to go crazy. Or I’d say: ‘If I see a piece of gum on the sidewalk I’m going to fall on the ground,’ and he’d point at the gum. I still meet children who, when I make that kind of joke, are alarmed.” Handler affects dismay that such children exist. “Some of them are my nieces. You can’t win them all.” One night, Laszlo's nightlight lamp goes out, and the dark speaks to him in a creeky, smooth and distant voice. The dark tells Laszlo that it wants to show him something, and Laszlo leaves his room with a flashlight. He looks towards the closet and shower curtain, before being told to go downstairs. He goes to the living room's largest window to look at the night, but the dark tells him to go into the basement. Though afraid, Laszlo enters the basement. Without a closet, you would have nowhere to put your shoes, and without a shower curtain, you would splash water all over the bathroom, and without the dark, everything would be light, and you never know if you needed a lightbulb." Simply told and evocatively drawn, this is an ideal book to read with young children. -- The Scotsman La mayoría de libros infantiles que tocan el tema del miedo, lo hacen de la misma forma; con imágenes coloridas, historias divertidas y que tienen como mensaje, enseñarnos que debemos ser valientes y afrontar lo que nos causa temor.You might be afraid of the dark, but the dark is not afraid of you.” Laszlo is afraid but there’s not much he can do about it. Seems as though the dark is everywhere you look sometimes. Generally speaking it lives in the basement, and every morning Laszlo would open the door and say, “Hi . . . Hi, dark.” He wouldn’t get a reply. Then, one night, the dark does something unprecedented. It comes into Laszlo’s room and though he has a flashlight, it seems to be everywhere. It says it wants to show him something. Something in the basement. Something in the bottom drawer of an old dresser. Something that helps Laszlo just when he needs it. The dark still visits Laszlo now. It just doesn’t bother him. He eloquently reminds us what it is to be afraid of the dark and also, with Jon Klassen's simple, illuminating drawings, guarantees that readers see the light. -- The Observer