Fascination with, and fear of, the dark are common in children and in many adults too. Pamela Hickman, author of several natural science books for seven to 11-year-olds, including Birdwise, Bugwise, and Plantwise, promises to awaken readers of The Night Book to the amazing world after dark. In this attractive information and activity book for young readers, 22 nocturnal topics, ranging from astronomy to zoology, are dealt with, each in a two-page spread. Appealing soft-coloured illustrations by Suzanne Mogensen are clearly labeled and interspersed with short segments of simple, straightforward text. The book is chock-full of fascinating tidbits on the night world, including how to tell the temperature by counting cricket chirps, and why plants grow most in the middle of the night. Included are such activities as making a starscope, identifying features of the moon, making a model of a cat’s eye, and testing echolocation in bats.

With daytime activities highlighted in yellow, night-time activities in blue, and interesting sub-topics listed in bold print, The Night Book is extremely browser-friendly. Its cover design featuring bold-coloured night animals on a black, star-bordered background will ensure that this information book does not languish on the shelf. The well-organized index should prove valuable to young researchers who are learning to work with key words.

The Night Book will be a welcome addition to the elementary school library collection of books containing simple science experiments for children to perform with parental guidance or accompaniment. (The author very wisely warns readers to take along an adult when they do a night-time activity). Though there are a number of books for primary grade children on nocturnal animals, Hickman’s book has a wider scope and will attract an older audience. For parents with children whose curiosity and interest in the natural world is high, yet whose independent reading level is below Grade 3, The Night Book is an excellent read-aloud choice, offering families the opportunity to discuss and explore the world around them together.