Night Owl Night
Susan Edwards Richmond
Illustrated by Maribel Lechuga
Charlesbridge Publishing
Age 4-8
Available Now!

After years of anticipation, young Sova is finally allowed to skip bedtime and accompany her mother, an owl researcher, on a night outing searching for saw-whet owls. Full of curiosity, Sova follows her mom’s lead into the forest to learn about the tools and techniques used to study owl-migration. After some failed attempts with no owls yet in sight, Sova quickly learns that, like her years of waiting for this very night, “a scientist must learn to wait” (p. 3). Sova comes to accept her disappointment, and just when even readers may feel unsure if Sova’s patience will pay off, Sova and her mom find a saw-whet owl cuddled into the mist net, invisible nets used by owl researchers. Sova soothes the young owl while learning how to study and band it, releasing it back onto its journey with the reverence and care exemplified by her mother.

Both the soft prose and wispy illustrations weave together Sova and saw-whet owls, building a sense of love and respect between these animals and characters. In one illustration, the saw-whet owl’s eyes mirror Sova’s reflection; in another, Lechuga illustrates Sova majestically transforming into an owl herself as she releases the owl, explicitly merging the two and mesmerizing the reader. The, soothing, natural blues and browns of the forest and owls are smoothly contrasted with the yellows and oranges of Sova and her mom, as if the two characters’ colors mimic the moonlight in a dark forest. Balancing storytelling and education, the text often reads like a lullaby, with phrases such as “over roots and rocks as we walk” (p. 8) and “in the hallway, a head taller, and hooted softly” (p. 5). While the narrative may seem text-heavy at times, the engaging illustrations and rhythmic prose draw readers in to the loving relationships between mother, daughter, and nature. As a nature-lover herself, Richmond includes an appendix with further reading about owls, their habitat, and bird-banding efforts. This soothing story, great for curious animal-lovers, will lull young night owls like Sova, who want to fend off sleep and spend their nights exploring.