From Amazon
The dark can seem full of hidden threats, especially if you believe in monsters. In
The Night Walker, an exquisite picture book by the author-illustrator partnership that created
The Follower and
Who, a Native boy walking alone at night imagines that a spirit known as the Night Walker is after him. In rhythmic prose that begs to be read aloud, Richard Thompson describes how the young boy "went exploring late one afternoon" with his "knobbly stick" and a pouch "to collect his treasures in." On his travels through field and forest, he finds and puts into his pouch a nail and three coins; a smooth, green rock and a piece of wood shaped like a running man; an eagle's feather and a spray of sweet-breath leaves. He doesn't notice the sun going down until it's too late. On his way home through the dark he suddenly hears "a clinking sound / a clicking sound / a rustling sound . . . / very close by."
Martin Springett's swirling illustrations give luminous form to the boy's fearful imaginings as he gradually becomes convinced that the clinking, clicking, rustling sounds following him belong to "one of those creatures in the stories that told you to never-go-out-in-the-night-alone." Thompson's reassuring ending strongly hints that the Night Walker was to be found in the boy's own pouch all along. (As his mother says, "sometimes the monster you hear behind you in the dark is only the clink and click and rustle of the things you have collected during the day.") But this accomplished and lyrical storyteller allows young readers to make up their own minds about the ultimate existence of the supernatural. (Ages 4 to 8) --Lisa Alward
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
Grade 1-4-During his countryside explorations, a boy gathers treasures such as a nail, stone, and feather, which he places in his pouch. As the sun sets, he hurries toward home, but he hears clicking and rustling sounds behind him. His imagination conjures up creatures that are ever more frightening until he races to escape the sharp-clawed Night Walker, stumbles, falls down, and eventually sleeps. When he returns home the following day, his mother speculates that the sounds had come from the treasure pouch. The boy remains uncertain. Springett's panoramic color illustrations are particularly effective in evoking the creatures that the boy conjures up. Fox, panther, and bear give way to a huge bird that fills the sky. Although no source notes indicate a tie to folk literature, the mother and son appear to be Native American. The suspenseful tone relieved by a logical explanation and the sweeping art recall an earlier Thompson-Springett collaboration, The Follower (Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2000). This time, however, Springett uses more color, and the ending is a bit more ambiguous. The combination of large, intriguing illustrations and an air of mystery offers read-aloud and discussion potential.
Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, MankatoCopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
