Swanson, S. M., &
Krommes, B. (2008). The house in the night. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Reading level: 60L
Interest level: Grades PreK - 2
Black and white scratchboard
pictures accompany simple text in this soothing bedtime tale. The scratches
create motion across the pages, which would otherwise be a little flat with
such a limited color palette. However limited, the illustrations in this book
are gorgeous. Yellow is used sparingly to highlight: for example, on the first
page an adult hands a bright yellow key to a genderless child, saying “Here is
a key to the house.” Yellow also creates visual interest: on the next page, a
giant, yellow sun with friendly eyes and thick, wavy rays greets the horizon on
the left page. The rays emanate clockwise, pushing the reader towards the right
page and the little house on the hillside. “In the house burns a light” says
the right page, and the yellow light breaks though the window. These clever
visual elements keep young readers interested in what is otherwise an
incredibly basic story.
