[.ca] Stormy Night (ISBN 1550746928)

Amazon.ca:
Michele Lemieux's beautifully illustrated Stormy Night presents a litany of key existential questions asked by an unnamed girl who lies awake at night, fretting and listening to a storm. Translated to English from German (it was originally published as Gewitternacht, and won the Bologna Ragazzi Award in its first incarnation), some of the Quebec-born author/illustrator's text is quite intense, dealing with topics like death, fear, and uncertainty. On three successive spreads Lemieux writes: "I'm scared of being abandoned," "of being separated from everyone I love," "of being left all alone in the world!" Lemieux balances the text with her witty line drawings--a slice of cake being removed from a decorated whole denotes separation anxiety--making it a useful tool in opening the door to discuss some difficult but unavoidable topics. Weighty issues or not, the book ends on an up note: "And what if we could live forever... and I would have friends everywhere! Wouldn't that be great!" It's also a gorgeous object. (Ages 9 and older) --Deirdre Hanna

sweet illustrations, deep thoughts :-):
I simply adore this book. The economy-of-line drawings are sweet and simply precious. The hardbound book is a classy-presented volume suitable for a coffeetable or as the "feature" on your bookshelf. The back spine is black cloth and the front and back covers are smooth clay paper. The pages are thick, sturdy cotton and just shy of being considered card stock... very nice. During a stormy night, a young girl, probably 9-12 years old, has trouble sleeping and her dog keeps her company as she ponders life's deepest questions. Her dog attentively follows her as she raids the refrigerator, brushes her teeth and sits on her bed. As she eats, you see many little bone-shaped dog treats on the floor... it is just too cute! During the night, her parents are obviously asleep and her dog is the only bounding board she has for questions such as, "Will I know when it's my time to die?" and "Will it hurt?" and makes suppositions about her future and station in life. The book wanders closely into the realm of new age, but it doesn't really teach any "new" concepts... the thoughts the little girl is pondering are thoughts all kids have, but rarely share with anyone... thoughts and fears that stay with us if a belief system is not introduced in the home. This is a great book to read with your children... it opens up topics of discussion in a very non-threatening environment and opens the stage for teaching children your beliefs concerning what happens when we die, etc. The book might be a little to intimidating to very young readers to absorb by themselves, but as a night-time read with a parent, even a five year old can participate in conversation about such topics... but really young readers may have trouble with the detailed drawings. Visually, the drawings are for more sophisticated eyes. As an adult, I just love this little book.

an AMAZING book.......:
Stormy Night is an AMAZING book, written by an extremely talanted author. In simple line sketches, and one-line questions and phrases, the author has managed to convey things that EVERYONE has felt - numerous times in their lives. The book consists of a main theme, focusing on LIFE and many WHAT-IFs. A WONDERFUL and FASCINATING read, recommended for both young and old!

Philosophy at its Best:
It is hard to believe that one simple book could hold more philosophy than John Locke, Plato, or Einstein, but it is true. If you allow yourself to go where Stormy Night wanders, your mind and heart will be opened up to the world. This book explores life, the universe, and everything, and asks those questions that kids wonder, and adults conveniently forget about. This book doesn't discriminate, it doesn't label, it doesn't seek to teach. It simply seeks for equinamity and understanding. It is ironically fitting that the author uses a storm metaphor to show the true thinking power behind open-mindedness. For many people it takes nothing less than an unsettling(storm) to allow them to reach the greatest expanses of their understanding. By using simple phrases and complicated pictures, Stormy night transcends the universe, allowing any person to explore their true inquisitive nature. Read this book to your kids when they are old enough, and allow them to explore new ideas, never stifle their imagination. Buy this book, and let yourself go to that place that frightens some, and envigorates others. Let this book show you to never discount any idea. Let this book give you a tear in the eye, a smile in the mouth, a twinkle of the eye, a beat of the heart, and an expansion of the mind.

Only Truth:
I read this book in 20 minutes. In those twenty minutes I felt every conceivable human emotion that it is possible to experience. This book contains the Weight of Life inside of it. The "plot" is fairly simple: One stormy night, a woman (and her dog) contemplate the nagging fears and questions that seem, at one point or another, to nag at everyone. Michele Lemieux's illustrations complement exactly the feelings expressed by the questions asked. Perhaps this is the most contemplative and introspective book I have ever read, though I do not believe that anything I could write here could express that. Next time you're in a book store, just flip through it, and you'll see what I mean.

Cool book to read to slightly older kids.:
The amount of text in this book makes it look like an early reader, but the basic questions it poses can make an adult stop and think. It covers the essential questions that plague humans since we became aware of our own existence within the world. Why are we here? It does not really answer that question, but it poses it in such a way that you just feel good.