This was such a beautiful and gentle story! I really enjoyed the way it explores the nighttime world through Luna’s eyes, making something that can sometimes feel scary seem magical and full of wonder. The illustrations are absolutely lovely and create such a dreamy atmosphere throughout the book. A wonderful read for encouraging children to embrace their imagination and find beauty in the world around them.

Luna and the Night is a beautifully crafted book about Luna, who is afraid of the Night but faces her fears and befriends the Night. This picturebook is illustrated by Ian de Haes using watercolor paints and colored pencils; the colored pencils add such vivid movement to the Night, which creeps, flows, and surges throughout the pages. While Maylis Daufresne wrote the book, the English translation is provided by Katy-Lockwood-Holmes, who creates such a vibrant iteration of Daufresne’s Night. This story is perfect the perfect bedtime read for those kids still afraid of the dark.

This book was reviewed thanks to NetGalley and Floris Books.

The illustrations in this one were very beautifully done. I can see a lot of kiddos really being drawn into all of the rich and beautiful colors.
The story was also a strong one, about a girl learning to face her fears of the night (although not all fears as it doesn't tackle monsters or things like that which usually is why kids don't like the night). I can see myself reading this for a storytime theme about the night sky.

Luna and the Night
Maylis Daufresne
This book is a beautifully illustrated. The topic is anormal childhood fear. The presentation of night as something we can perceive differently is a unique interpretation. This is a good social emotional learning book about teaching change in perspective.

Luna is afraid of the night. Her mother suggests that she talk to Night about it and she does so. Night paints wonderful word pictures for her of jumping in starry puddles at night, and flying to a ball in a dress made of stars. This is very comforting, although she doesn't address what most kids are afraid of with the dark: what might jump out of it.

I also can't figure out why might is depicted with teal and shades of orange. Why not blues and purples?

The illustrations in this book are absolutely stunning. The color palettes, the design, the formatting, is all top notch. The story is very sweet with Luna's mother telling Luna to not be afraid of the dark, but to talk to it, and they become friends and spend time together until Luna becomes sleepy and falls asleep, comforted. This would be a wonderful bedtime story and for children who are struggling with falling asleep without a nightlight and need a little reassurance.