Smoky Night

Eve Bunting wrote "Smoky Night" as a children's book that teaches some very valuable lessons. She wrote about the experiences of the Los Angeles riots from the point of view of a young boy named Daniel. Daniel and his mother live in Los Angeles when the riots break out. Daniel watches the evil things people are doing outside his window and learns that they do it because they don't like the people who look or sound different from themselves. When a fire threatens his apartment building, Daniel and his mother must evacuate along with the rest of the tenants and go to a shelter for the night. Daniel is frantically searching for his beloved cat and questioning all his neighbors on her location. Finally, a firefighter brings his cat in along with Mrs. Kim's cat. Daniel thinks it is odd that the two of them were found together because he thought they despised each other. Then he realizes they now get along because they finally got to know each other. His realization brings about a revelation among his neighbors who then become friendly with one another, despite their skin tone or language. This book opens the floor up for introducing children to the Los Angeles riots and a discussion on racial prejudice. It might be possible to have children do some research on the events and compile a classroom portfolio on that time in history. Discussing racial discrimination could also lead to the introduction of the Civil Rights Movement and the heroes of that time. This book is also great for familiarizing students with the qualities of different ethnic groups and how a diverse population is actually beneficial to the nation as a whole. "Smoky Night" is a terrific book. It is a wonderful resource for showing children how awful the riots were, and also showing how absurd! Those could have easily been prevented if people would have simply accepted others for who they are! This book certainly raises awareness of the possible devastation that prejudice can cause. It can be used as a tool to minimize the outbreaks in the future by presenting it to children today. Bunting certainly didn't hold back in telling the truth about the riots. She gave details of the goings on in the street and the obvious dangers that were present. The illustrations in "Smoky Night" are absolutely incredible. David Diaz put paintings on top of photographs of real objects. The colors in his paintings are abstract but they represent the different ethnicities unmistakably. The unique colors really give a bold statement to the book, but I think there is also a quality about them that helps represent unity across the people in the book.

Who would have thought a book focusing its attention on race riots would have won the 1995 Caldecott Award? Yet when you think about it... it makes sense. The best children's books are the ones that can explain awful circumstances in a way that kids can understand. Just as the 2004 Caldecott Award winner "The Man Who Walked Between the Towers" tips its hat to September 11th, "Smoky Night" was inspired by the L.A. riots. According to the bookflap, author Even Bunting wondered what riots meant to the children that lived through them. Through this tale, Bunting shows the good that can come out of hard times and struggles. When the book begins, young Daniel and his mom are watching the people rioting in the street below. Daniel is confused by this, and rightly so. These people are taking an odd joy in what they do. Even as they destroy and steal they act happy with what they're doing. Says Daniel, "I've never heard anybody laugh the way they laugh". That night Daniel is woken up out of his bed by the shaking of his mother. The apartment building is on fire, and the boy cannot locate his pet cat Jasmine. In the panic he's forced to leave without her and stay in a shelter that night with his mom. Mrs. Kim, a neighbor of Daniel, is missing her cat as well. Suddenly a fire fighter enters the building, both cats under his arms. Where once the cats used to fight one another, now there is a bond between them. A similar attempt to make peace with Mrs. Kim ends with pleasing results. The story doesn't strike you as particularly moving at first. You need to read it and digest it a while to get the full flavor of the text. When I first read through the tale I felt disappointed. A little let down. Then I thought about what I read and went back to it. The inclusion of the cats is really what lets this story work as well as it does. I also appreciated how the tale acknowledged the dark side of human beings. Though it's clear that Daniel and his mother are not "bad people", he notes that the reason he and his mother do not shop at the story of Mrs. Kim is that, "Mama says it's better if we buy from our own people". This chilling statement is somewhat rectified by the end, but just barely. I was grateful that this didn't turn out to be a throwaway line. The illustrations for this book, provided by the multi-talented Daid Diaz, work exceedingly well. The thick heavily stylized drawing style of Diaz is contrasted with a kind of multi-media pairing with photographs. If you've ever read Kathleen Krull's remarkable, "Wilma Unlimited" then you'll know what I'm talking about. For example, when we see Mrs. Kim unhappily trying to stop people from stealing her store's goods, the photograph behind the illustration is a sidewalk covered in scattered dry goods. Underneath the nuts and dried fruits you can just make out the childlike chalk drawings, possibly made earlier in the day. Tiny impossible details like this one fill the text. It's re

It should have won all the awards it won! We liked that it was based on true events and it brings people together. We never knew about riots before we read the book. It's a really good book!

This small children's book is focused on the riots in Los Angeles, a child's view of them, and how people of different backgrounds can come together. It is a great book that can lead a child into a discussion with an adult about riots, violence, mob psychology, and how all of those factors can effect children. It was illustrated by David Diaz and it won the 1995 Caldecott Medal for best illustration in a book for children.

Sometimes the violence was scary, but it was a real good story. The drawings were awesome!