Author Interview, Book Reviews, middle grade, picture book

Enter to Win A Lyrical Nature Picture Book

carolbaldwin

I have a stack of picture books to review and give away. Today I’m going to start with an autographed copy of Dark on Light written by Dianne White and illustrated by Felicita Sala (Beech Lane Books, 2022).

REVIEW

This is a quiet story about three siblings who follow their dog out into the evening shadows with only a flashlight, the moon, and the stars to guide them.

White’s lyrical language pairs beautifully with Sala’s soft illustrations. This is a story that begs to be read at bedtime.

Notice how White uses sparse, simple language that effectively captures all of the senses, and how Sala’s illustrations tell the story.

As the reader turns the pages, she will encounter textures, colors, and the repititon of the “dark on light” theme.

White even includes smells!

The book takes the reader from dusk to dark as the children search for and find their dog. The satisfying ending shows the children returning home and being tucked into bed.

Sapphire the window, glowing and bright.

Attic and blaket and dark on light.

…..

White the star, shimmering bright

House and room and dark on light.

A NOTE ABOUT THE POETRY

Do you get the idea that this is a special type of poetry? I wrote to Dianne White and asked her what type of poetry she used. She wrote back this amazing reply:

“It’s a form I made up as a challenge for myself, and I’ve never tried to explain it before, so hopefully this makes sense! 

  • Each stanza is a quatrain (4 lines) composed of 2 sets of rhyming couplets. (lines 1 & 2 are the first couplet, lines 3 & 4 are the second) 
  • The second couplet of each quatrain (line 3 of the quatrain) begins with a color word (rose, green, lavender, etc.)
  • The last two words of the first line of the second couplet (line 3 of the quatrain)  are “… and bright”
  • The last three words of the second line of the second couplet (line 4 of the quatrain) is “dark on light.”
  • The first two nouns (ex. Twilight/evening; garden/stones) of the second line of each second couplet (line 4 of the quatrain) is taken from line 2 and line 1 of the first couplet, respectively.” 

She went on to explain that, “by using rhyme, color words, and a lot of repetition, I wanted to have a kind of ‘rolling’ pattern throughout the book. I was trying to do something similar in sound to the patterns of the first two companion books in the series (BLUE on BLUE and GREEN on GREEN). It became its own pattern using the building blocks mentioned above.”

I can’t imagine creating my own poetry form and then being able to use it so successfully in three different books!

CURRICULUM RESOURCE

Although I think this is the perfect bedtime story, I think that the educators could use it to teach sensory writing in K-2nd grade. Older students can learn about the forms of poetry that White incoporated into this lovely picture book.

GIVEAWAY

I am giving away my copy of this gorgeous book. Please let me know in the comments If you are an educator or librarian and I’ll enter your name twice. Giveaway ends May 30th.

Published by carolbaldwin

Carol enjoys teaching writing and has presented at many educators' and writing conferences. She has published widely in newspapers and magazines and along with Rebecca Wheeler, co-publishes Talking Story, a newsletter for educators and media specialists. When she isn’t reading, writing, or blogging, you’ll find her walking with friends, golfing, or gardening.

39 thoughts on “Enter to Win A Lyrical Nature Picture Book”

  1. I am a 1st grade teacher and would love to add this book to my classroom library!

    Reply

    2. I think you would love this book, Xiomara! The title was inspired by a student and another picture – The Moon Jumpers, by Janice May Udry. :-)

      Reply

  2. I love everything about this book. The challenge that the author gave herself, her successful completion of that challenge, and the book itself. How beautiful! I will share this to my X account.

    Reply

  13. This book looks absolutely gorgeous! I just requested it from my library.

    Reply

  15. Beautiful! This is a wonderful book to share with my Kinder class. Thanks for sharing. 🌌🌟

    Reply

    1. Hi, Jennifer!

      It’s the perfect book to pair with THE MOON JUMPERS by Janice Udry and Maurice Sendak, an “oldie but goodie” that immediately came to mind when a student suggested the title DARK on LIGHT for my book. :-)

      Reply

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