Smoky Night By Eve Bunting

This controversial book did a very good job of incorporating the illustrations into the story. The illustrations are in a collage form that makes the pages look three-dimensional. I really like the variety of color seen throughout each paper, even the endpaper is set up in collage. There is a great deal of texture in the illustrations, but it does not take away from the story because the words are typed in black that are sectioned off on top of a solid colored paper. The main characters in the book are painted in a Cubism form that reminds me of Picasso when he painted "Les Desmoiselles D'Avigon." This is because there are sharp angles and thick black lines that outline the figures. I think that it is a good story for children to read because it shows how important family is in bad situations. This family had riots going on outside there home and there house was set on fire. The young girl listened to her mom and remained brave throughout the incident. I like the page layout because the words were always on the left hand side of the page and then the illustration was on the right side. There are issues of race that young children might not understand, but it is important to introduce them to other cultures. If I were to use this book in my classroom, I would have my students create their own collage along with a story about a time they had to be brave.