Smoky Night

Daniel and his mother, and his cat Jasmine, watch the destruction caused by a riot from the darkened refuge of their apartment. They hope to escape unnoticed, but in the night someone sets fire to their neighborhood, and they and all their neighbors are forced to flee. Yet in the shelter they come together and begin to know each other better than before, facing their own feelings of prejudice and discarding such destructive forces.

Smoky Night is one of those picture books that always make me cry. The story deals with the difficult subject of hatred and rage and intolerance, yet in a subtle and evocative manner. Bunting first sets the stage with the broader picture of an out of control riot, as seen through the fearful eyes of a young show more boy. The author then narrows in on the personal prejudices that each person carries, the feelings that are at the center of dangerous riots; though they may seem petty, when built upon with mob anxiety and societal pressure, these emotions of ignorance and prejudice can explode with destructive force.

The amazing art work by Diaz provides a perfect counterpart to the story. Vibrant yet dark acrylics match the mood. Mixed media backgrounds accompany the illustrations, along with photo collages, and help to impart the themes of fracture and disconnection.

Author and illustrator move us from these dark places to hope, as the calming words of Daniel's mother work against the earlier tensions of the book. She reminds us that these people have lost themselves, and that we must keep compassion for them even as we keep ourselves removed from their hate and anger. Bunting reminds us all that we have biases within us, and we must seek these out and destroy them before they lead to disaster. The story ends on the positive note that this is possible for everyone, no matter how late, and the final pictures are of the apartment inmates bonding together and symbolically cuddling with their cats. show less

A young boy and his mother are caught up in the chaos and fear of an inner-city riot in this moving picture-book from author Eve Bunting and illustrator David Diaz. Watching from their apartment window, they see rioters smashing windows and looting stores. In a moment of clarity, Daniel observes that the rioters seem to be filled with both anger and happiness. Later that night, when their apartment building is set on fire, Daniel and his mother are forced to evacuate to a local shelter, leaving behind their cat Jasmine, who has gone missing. When a firefighter shows up with Jasmine, as well as the cat belonging to their neighbor Mrs. Kim, the unexpected trauma-induced friendship between the two felines prompts their humans to reconsider show more their own hostility to one another.

The Caldecott Medal winner in 1995, Smoky Night is a visually arresting picture-book, with bold acrylic and collage illustrations that reminded me a bit of Marc Chagall at times. Diaz's work here has a folk-art sensibility that is really quite striking, and he manages to depict the racially diverse cast of characters in such a way as to accentuate their similarities to one another, rather than their differences. The story itself is by turns heartbreaking and heartwarming, as it moves from the confusion and fear of the riots, to the reunion of two families with their beloved cats. I thought Bunting managed to capture a child's perspective on a disturbing event quite well, and presented a number of thought-provoking insights - the fact that rioters can come to enjoy the violence they are inflicting; the idea that not knowing members of other communities can lead to misunderstanding and hostility - in a way that is entirely natural within the story. Although Bunting's narrative was inspired by the real-life riots that occurred in Los Angeles in 1992, the story itself gives no specific details about place, time or cause, making it a tale with significance for a wider array of violent events like this.

I have seen Smoky Night criticized as being inappropriate for children, given its serious and sometimes scary subject matter, but while I think that may indeed be true for some youngsters, I believe it also reflects the real world experiences of other children, who will benefit from this depiction. Recommended to anyone looking for children's stories that address issues of community violence, prejudice and racism, and the possibility of healing, through better understanding. show less

How do you write a children's book about riots, looting, and arson? I've been gradually working my way through all of the Caldecott Medal winners from our local library as bedtime reading for our oldest kids. When I checked this one out, I noticed the illustrations, but didn't pay much attention to the subject matter. As I started reading to my five year old daughter, I wondered whether this was really something I wanted to expose her to. By the end of this powerful little book the answer was clearly yes. It manages to address inherently scary subjects with an ultimately comforting voice, and very directly discourages isolating ourselves from those who are different (a good message for kids to hear, in my opinion).

I found this to be a wonderful, powerful, and very moving book. In this story, a young boy named Daniel is at home with his mom during a riot. It is not explained what started the riot, but this book is written from the perspective of Daniel, the little boy stuck in the middle of the riot. At first, he is just watching people from his window with his mom, explaining a little bit about his neighborhood, and mentioning the fact that his neighborhood has some diverse cultures that don't typically interact with each other. The one he mentions specifically is the Korean grocery store; Daniel says that his mom told him they don't shop there because "it's best we buy from our own people," and goes on to say that even their cats don't get show more along. Eventually, the rioters appear to leave, and he goes to sleep with his mother. He is then awoken by his mother to find that his apartment building has been set ablaze by the rioters, and they have to leave in a frantic. He looks for his cat Jasmine, but can't find her initially, and he leaves the apartment with his mother. Firefighters come, and Daniel expresses his concern about his cat. The firefighters go into the building, and while putting out the fire, they also find Jasmine, Daniel's cat. The firefighter who comes out of the building with Jasmine is also holding Mrs. Kim's cat (Mrs. Kim is the Korean owner of the grocery store). The firefighter says that the cats were together, scared, and comforting each other, and both Mrs. Kim and Daniel's mother are amazed, because of the two cat's history of not getting along. Daniel's mom makes a comment about the cats not getting along, and Daniel makes the very astute comment that they probably didn't get along because "they just didn't know each other before." This prompts Daniel's mother to extend an offer to Mrs. Kim and her cat to come "share a bowl of milk," and Mrs. Kim initially hesitates, but then says definitively that "they will come."

Part of the reason I found this book so powerful was because of the metaphor the cats served. Mrs Kim's cat and Daniel's cat allegedly had "fought all the time" at the beginning of this story. Furthermore, Daniel's mother had avoided Mrs. Kim's store in the past. However, the fire and trauma brings these two cats together, and then through Daniel's insight, both Mrs. Kim and Daniel's mother realize that they are not that different after all. Another reason I really liked this book was because of the relevance it has to current events. I'm sure there is a litany of children in Ferguson Missouri who would be able to identify with, and possibly benefit from this book. A third reason I liked this book was because of the intensely stylized illustrations. The illustrations did a fantastic job reflecting and amplifying the mood and tone of the story; during the fire the text was surround by a pattern of construction paper that vaguely looked like fire. Furthermore, at the end of the story, after the riot and it's results had seemed to bring people together, the very last page of the book had no words on it, but just the two cats who had previously hated each other(before the riot). This last image showed the cats snuggling on top of a blanket.

This book is definitely one of my favorites, and its message is strong and clear. Daniels mother believed it was best to "[keep] with their own people," but it took a tragedy, as well as the pets of different peoples coming together, before the people themselves even made an effort to connect with one another. The message of this book is that even though someone may look and talk different than you, they might actually have a lot in common with you. At the start of this book, Mrs. Kim and Daniel's mother seemed to view each other as coming from a different world, however, the events that happened forced them to question their predispositions, and ultimately they realized that they were both a part of the same community, and they were better off uniting with one another than by isolating each other. show less

Smoky Night is a story set during the 1994 L.A. riots. It follows the story of a young boy and his mother as they watch the riots unfold and as they have to evacuate their apartment due to fire. This book discusses rioting, and why people do it, in a way that is approachable and poignant for both children and adults. It also talks about prejudice and how realizing our prejudices can allow us to work past them just like the two cats did during the fire.

I really enjoyed this book. At first, as I began reading the story I had mixed feelings about how serious of a topic this was to be told in children's literature. The story reflects upon a tough time in 1992 in Los Angeles, CA when there were many riots in the streets caused by a civil disturbance. The story is told in first person from the perspective of the little boy protagonist in the story. I feel that telling the story of this issue from the perspective of a child makes the situation seem less dark, yet still real and more reachable to young readers who may not have known about or experienced an event as such. The main idea of the story is community, the story begins with closed minded characters with their own unsupported show more prejudices and it ends with more of an understanding as to many other cultures and ways of living. show less

Watching news coverage of the Los Angeles riots, Eve Bunting wondered how children perceive such events, especially those who actually live through them. In this picture book she focuses on Daniel and his mother, as well as his cat, Jasmine. His mother explains calmly that these people are angry and doing wrong things, like stealing and breaking windows, but tries to reassure him that he is safe inside. Still when a fire breaks out they must flee, and Daniel is worried about Jasmine.

I like that Bunting gave a sense of the chaos and the fear and anxiety that both children and adults felt, but that she also allowed for safety and compassion and understanding. It’s a lesson in recognizing our common bonds as humans, rather than our show more exterior differences.

David Diaz does a marvelous job illustrating the book. He created collages of materials, including cardboard, wallpaper, tissues, shoe heels, against which he placed his acrylic drawings. The result is vivid and graphic. His artistry won the Caldecott Medal. show less