Review: `Shadows flee anyone who knows how to turn on the light.'
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 08 14, 2013
Yuval Harpaz is a father of three who likes jogging, personal development, writing, photography and doodling and writing and illustrating books for children that are built to establish the love for books and reading. His stories are meant to make a difference and to allow children to develop and master a new level of reading. The writing is on a very high level, meant for children in the 2nd grade and up, and holds enough sense of adventure and learning of interpersonal relationship skills to keep children entertained while being educated. The focus of this story is overcoming fears and replacing those fears with valuable skills.Tommy has a new fighter plane, a gift from his father, hanging from his ceiling and tells his favorite plane `goodnight' - but things had not always been so happy at bedtime. Tommy had been having terrible fears about the Murky Shadow that came out after lights were out at night. Tommy tried all manner of skills to keep the Murky Monster out - making a tent to hide in, making signs saying `keep out', using a flashlight at night (and that worked until the batteries burned out), and searching his house with his father to find Murky Shadow's hiding place. One night his father told him he had a present for him on his parent's bed, but being dark, Tommy was afraid to fetch it.  With his father's reassurance Tommy walked to his parent's bedroom, turning on the lights as he went until he finally was able to fetch the present - a fighter plane! His father informs Tommy that fighter pilots fly at night with night vision goggles and that Tommy could learn to be a fighter pilot because now that he had fetched the present in the dark, turning on the lights as he went, he had courage - he had received the gift of courage. Together they assemble the fighter plane and every night Tommy was reminded of his powers to defeat the shadow.Charming story, well-written, fine illustrations, and a very fine story about conquering fear of the dark! Grady Harp, May 14