Twilight Comes Twice

The author and artist have explored my two favorite times of day with this work. The two twilight periods, dawn and dusk. The text is done in a flowing, simple poetic type prose and those who love poetry will love this one. As to the text, I do disagree with the brief paragraph here published by The School Library journal (who, more often than not, get it wrong anyway) in that they state that the metaphors used are sometimes more distracting than illuminating. This I fear is the mind set that seems to be in vogue of late, i.e. underestimating the intelligence of our kids. If a child is to grow into a truly literate adult, they need to undersand metaphors, their meaning the their use. You cannot, in my opinion, start this process soon enough. What better way to begin than with a work like this. Yes, I will admit that this may take some actual work on some adults part, the explanation, but is not what adults are suppose to do? Even a bad metaphor is better than no metaphor at all when teaching. Anyway.... The art work in this book is stunning. The story, and there is a story here, deals with people, the environment and the critters around us. The entire book is a feast for the eye and ear. The story deals with the two areas mentioned above...what happens during these wonderful times of the day? Why are they so enchanting? Why have poets written about them for hundreds of years? It is enjoyable, the kids like it, which, when all is said and done, is the best endorsement, and it never get old. This is certainly one you need to add to your child's library. Highly recommend this one.

I am a middle school teacher and found this book to be a great tool for teaching my sixth graders. We have been studying personification and this book has great examples in it. The pictures are beautiful and the text is serene. This is a very wonderful book.

This book puts a lot of descriptive writing in it. It doesn't really have a problem. I love the way the author says "slowly dusk pours the syrup of darkness into the forest". In the pictures, they always put the girl's dog with the girl. I think you would like thiss book if you are 9 and up to 12. I loved this book. Giuliana G.

A story set in a suburban neighborhood with a girl and her dog doing various activities as the sun rises or sets. The first part of the book is about dusk and the second part is about dawn. The text is poetic and beautiful. The text is on one page and the illustrations are on the other page; this is a larger sized hardcover book. The illustrations are beautiful paintings, all with the special hues of dusk or dawn. Some of the scenes are: the girl and dog playing in a sprinkler while bats fly overhead and fireflies fly at their feet, two fisherman on the shore of a lake, and the girl and dog taking a walk through the woods at dawn. The poetic nature of the text is rarely found in modern children's books and is a joy to read. "When the sky is full and singing with stars you know that twilight has given way to true night." This is a gentle and calming book to read.

This book was introduced to me in a Teaching Language Arts class in college and I have since fallen in love with it. Ralph Fletcher's vivid descriptions bring his words to life and puts the reader right within his story. Through his use of words, readers can easily paint the picture of twighlight and experience it first hand. This book is excellent for teaching children about descriptive writing and the use of vivid images within their writing. A must have book that is enjoyable for all ages!