On a Summer Night by Deborah Hopkinson (review)

Reviewed by: On a Summer Night by Deborah Hopkinson Kate Quealy-Gainer Hopkinson, Deborah On a Summer Night; illus. by Kenard Pak. Chronicle, 2024 [56p] Trade ed. ISBN 9781797200132 $18.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R 4-7 yrs "Even the crickets think it's too hot to sing" on this summer night, says the unseen narrator of this cumulative tale. So, when a young girl startles from sleep, she wonders what woke her. Padding through the house, she passes her dozing cat, which suddenly wakes as well. When the girl goes outside, she hears her neighbor's dog bark—"Who has woken him? Was it the cat? Was it you?'' A rabbit hops by, the tree rustles, the air stirs, and the clouds roll in, each prompting more questions from the narrator: "Who has woken the cloud? Was it the air? Was it the tree? Was it the rabbit? Was it the dog? Was it the cat? Was it you?" A slant of light, creeping over the spreads, reveals the moon to be the culprit, but its soothing beams now settle everyone down, quieting the animals, hushing the trees, and sending the little one back to bed. The energy of the text is matched by a lulling cadence that expertly captures the eerie coziness of nighttime waking, when the world holds both mystery in its stillness and comfort in its peace. Hopkinson taps into every sense to fully immerse the reader in this summer night, noting the quivering whiskers of the rabbit, the soft kiss of the air, the click, click, click of the dog as it crosses the wooden porch. The digital illustrations are appropriately muted and static, anchoring the reader in each scene and encouraging quiet observation as the girl slowly moves through the scenes along with the creeping moon. Pair this with Snicket's The Dark (BCCB 6/13) for a contemplative bedtime. [End Page 323]