Night Lights: A Sukkot Story. by Barbara Diamond Goldin - 1995.

New York, NY Harcourt, Brace & Company: Gulliver Books, 1995. Hardcover First Edition [1995]; First Printing indicated. First Edition [1995]; First Printing indicated. Fine in Fine DJ: Book shows binding square and secure; text clean. DJ unclipped; mylar-protected. As New. NOT a Remainder. NOT a Book-Club Edition. NOT an Ex-Library copy. 4to. Unpaginated (about 32pp. Illustrated by Louise August. Goldin smoothly blends her contemporary story, about a boy's fears of sleeping under the open roof of his family sukkah, with an explanation of the festival of Sukkot. Louise August's pictures are just the right side of scary. Ages 4-8. Hardback with DJ. Goldin uses the story of two siblings spending a night in the family sukkah -a small, temporary hut roofed with tree branches that is constructed during the Jewish fall harvest festival of Sukkot - as a vehicle to help explain the holiday. Daniel and his older sister help their parents to build and decorate the sukkah, and then share a family meal inside it. Afterwards, trying to settle down to sleep, the boy becomes nervously aware of night sounds and shapes, but is reassured by his sister's comparison of brightly shining stars and moon to the night light in his bedroom. Bold, full-and double-page linocuts, richly colored with oils and pastels, feature caricaturelike people, imaginary monsters, and a particularly expressive pet cat. The first page of black text, set against a peach and blue sky, is a bit difficult to read, but the volume as a whole is well designed and attractive. A page of information about Sukkot concludes the book. Because most young children can relate to Daniel's fear of the dark, the story will be appreciated by both general and Jewish audiences.