By the Dawn's Early Light - Hardcover

Ackerman, Karen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689317883 ISBN 13: 9780689317880

Publisher: Atheneum, 1994

Synopsis

With their mother working nights, it is hard for Rachel and her younger brother, Josh, to find time to spend with Mom, except when they spend the early morning talking about work and school, sharing quiet time, and watching the sun come up.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 2-As Mom leaves for the graveyard shift at the factory, her two children begin their evening routine under the care of their grandmother. Home activities are then contrasted with Mom's at work, until her 4:00 a.m. return when the children sneak out of bed for one-on-two cuddling and sharing. Told from the eight or nine-year-old daughter's perspective, the text is honest without being maudlin or bitter: "We are a little mad because everybody else's parents work during the day, but neither one of us wants to say so." Warm, often impressionistic watercolor illustrations accurately convey the misty, wee-small hour setting as well as the glow of family relationships. Characters are predominantly African-American females. The large format is fine for group reading, but the intimacy of the story invites independent, quiet reflection. A reassuring affirmation of intergenerational love, regardless of circumstances.
Claudia Cooper, Ft. Stockton Independent School District, TX
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ages 4-7. Since Mom works the night shift, Josh and his bigger sister, the narrator, say good-bye to her around dinner time and see her again in the early morning, when she comes home from work. The first half of this quiet picture book shifts back and forth between the children's nighttime routine with their grandmother and their mother's evening at the box factory. The last half shows the sleepy, loving morning the children spend with their mother, waiting for the dawn's early light. Ackerman manages to convey her own feelings while retaining the childlike voice. Even though she wishes her mother didn't work the night shift, the girl is clearly fascinated by the details of what her mother does at the factory. Opening up the story with her luminous, watercolor artwork, Stock depicts the characters and their surroundings with intimacy and grace. The simultaneous publication of the book in Spanish (with a generally good translation) adds another dimension to this unusual picture book. Carolyn Phelan

About this edition

• Publisher: Atheneum
• Publication date: 1994
• ISBN 10: 0689317883
• ISBN 13: 9780689317880
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 1