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Flashlight

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Named an NPR Best Book of the Year and Junior Library Guild Selection, this wordless storybook with stunning illustrations aims to lighten the fear of the dark and the noises that come with it.

" Flashlight allows readers to experience the wonder and excitement of nighttime exploration in the woods and wordlessly entices readers to explore the hidden nature outside their own homes."— The Busy Librarian

Inside the tent it's cozy, but what is going on outside? Is it dark? Is it scary? Not if you have your trusty flashlight!

In this charming story, told solely through images, artist Lizi Boyd offers an enchanting exploration of night, nature, and the nocturnal world. One boy's camping adventure gets even better when he shines a light into the shadows and finds all sorts of nighttime creatures, fascinating insects, plants, trees, and streams—all brilliantly illuminated in the beam of his flashlight.

Both lyrical and humorous, this visual poem—like the flashlight beam itself—reveals there is magic in the darkness. We just have to look for it.

​INSPIRES THE Camping books for kids are usually filled with how-to guides or campfire stories. Flashlight is a unique children's book that captures the special magic of a camp-out through artwork that makes the moonlight-touched backyard forest come to life.

SEEK-AND-FIND Though not a typical search-and-find book, Flashlight 's pages reveal beautiful details that readers can return to again and again to study and explore.

APPEALING FOR RELUCTANT AND EARLY Wordless stories like Aaron Becker's Journey and complete Wordless Trilogy; David Wiesner's Flotsam , Tuesday , and many other titles; and Tomie dePaola's Pancakes for Breakfast offer young or reluctant readers the chance to explore books in a way that can establish a positive connection to reading.

Perfect

40 pages, Hardcover

First published August 12, 2014

10 people are currently reading
1243 people want to read

About the author

Lizi Boyd

48 books31 followers

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5 stars
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974 (39%)
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539 (21%)
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122 (4%)
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31 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 450 reviews
Profile Image for Mischenko.
1,031 reviews94 followers
May 24, 2017
To see Wednesday's Wordless Picture Books, please visit www.readrantrockandroll.com

Flashlight by Lizi Boyd is a wordless picture book highlighting a journey through the dark. A child has his flashlight and will make new discoveries in the dark while camping in the forest. There’s a lot to discover in nature if you’ll only take the time to look.

We enjoyed the dark illustrations with the hidden objects in the stream of the light beam. The boy finds all sorts of night-time creatures, plants, trees, insects and streams which offers insight to everything that’s going on in the dark of night. Children will learn that nighttime offers the opportunity to discover nocturnal creatures while getting a calm feel of nature. This is a perfect bedtime book.

4****
Profile Image for Mir.
4,974 reviews5,331 followers
March 1, 2018
I think I liked the illustrations better as stand-alone pieces of art than as a story.
Luckily I had the cut-outs mentioned to me ahead of time or I might not have even noticed; they're pretty small and the details aren't particularly interesting.

I think this would work well for a kind who was either fond of or afraid of the dark.
Profile Image for Sandra.
921 reviews138 followers
March 31, 2016
A boy, a flashlight and the forest at night. That's all needed to start a great adventure. In this wordless story a little boy discovers the animals that make all these noises during the night. He is being observed by the animals too. And when the flashlight falls and the animals grab it, the interaction begins.

The art is beautiful, full of things to discover in the darkness. The illustrations really make you feel in the forest.

I would suggest to read it at night and with a flashlight!

Find more children's book reviews in Reviews in Chalk
Profile Image for Dani ❤️ Perspective of a Writer.
1,512 reviews5 followers
March 1, 2018
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Check out more Picture book reviews @ Perspective of a Writer...

A word-less picture book in the nature of I spy but about what can be found in the beam of a flashlight during the dark of night.

Every once in a while I pick up a word-less book as my nephew struggles with words. This one was a great one I thought because he is extremely afraid of the dark and I wondered how he would react to this child hanging out in a tent with only a flashlight...

He was NOT impressed, lol. He thought the kid was a little crazy and we were both a little disappointed the child wasn't brown like in her other book. He did appreciate the animals that came out and we made a little story about it... It sure was an impressive book for a budding artist though... He struggled to pick a page to draw, because he wanted to draw them all!! He was excited for all the details in the drawings.

The story is about a child who explores the dark of nature with a flashlight while out camping. I though it was a perfect book for a family who enjoys camping, especially one with young kids who may be a little afraid of sleeping outside. It would make a great precursor for a camping trip as an activity one could do after dark! And the way the animals helped the boy find his tent and get back was too cute... such a subliminal message that we share nature with animals.

This is a book all about art! The almost chalk drawings with the spots of color due to the flashlight are ingenious! The cutouts that cause pieces of the art to travel from page to page is so fun as well. While I think a special needs child would struggle some with this book, it is still a great book for a home library... especially if you have an artist or a hands on child reader.

BOTTOM LINE: Oh No! What will we find in the dark... Let's find out!!

______________________
You can find this review and many others on my book blog @ Perspective of a Writer. See my picture book reviews in a special feature called Boo's Picture Gallery...
Profile Image for Dave Schaafsma.
Author 6 books32.1k followers
July 1, 2015
Great silent children's book about what is revealed with a flashlight at night, including creatures, color, when a kid goes out. When the kid drops the flashlight, some of the animals get in the game, too. Really beautiful artwork, in drawing, color and composition. And some cutouts, too.
Profile Image for Riley.
69 reviews45 followers
July 17, 2023
Really creative! There’s no words so it’s mainly focused on the cut outs and illustrations, supes cute and lovely for nature and yeah!
Profile Image for Darinda.
9,137 reviews157 followers
October 25, 2020
A wordless children's picture book. Enchanting illustrations. Charming and creative story.
Profile Image for Melki.
7,280 reviews2,606 followers
June 5, 2018
What a world of wonders awaits when you're outdoors after dark!

This is just a delight, with illustrations by the author that demand to be pored over.

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I loved it when the animals take charge of the flashlight.
Profile Image for The Library Lady.
3,877 reviews679 followers
October 27, 2018
Normally I am not into wordless books, but the black and white world with only the objects in the path of the flashlight being revealed in color is amazing and truly needs no text. This is a textbook example of how effective a real artist's work can be in a picture book. The sort of thing the Caldecott geniuses pass by in favor of ugly "hip" art.
Profile Image for Jennifer B..
1,278 reviews30 followers
June 28, 2017
It's wordless and with lovely artwork, so you can follow the story and imagine the details yourself. Very nice.
26 reviews
October 8, 2018
1.Amazon.com Best Books of the Year 2014, Ages 3–5; ALA Notable Books for Children 2015, Younger Readers; 2015 Bologna Ragazzi Award for the Fiction

2.Pre Kindergarten- 2nd Grade

3.This outdoor themed book is perfect for readers who enjoy the curiosities of nature. As we follow a boy’s adventures through the night we begin to discover the beautiful colors hidden in the dark black forest. As the little boy shines his flashlight we see colorfully hued animals, trees,and flags. This book even adds a cute twist when the boy drops his flashlight and the other animals begin to shine the light on him. When the boy finally finds his campsite again the book leads to a calm ending of curiosity to search for more.

4.A great book for a younger class exploring a camping theme, or to just boost inquisitive minds about nature and animals. The artwork in this book is beautifully displayed and the illustrations make you feel like your outside in the dark.For a read aloud this would allow children to interact and participate in finding all the things to discover in the darkness.

5.Flashlight themed lessons:
(Kindergarten- 2nd)
Flashlight Sight word game: In a whole group have students sound out each sight word hidden around the room on stars. Students will find the words by shining the flashlight on the word they are trying to pronounce.

(Kindergarten- 1st)
Camping themed beginning sounds: As part of a literacy center have students identify the beginning sound of each picture given. Students will choose from four different sounds, whichever one is the correct sound students will place a marshmallow on the correct beginning letter.
Accredited: Mrs. VanMeter
Profile Image for Jenny.
3,362 reviews40 followers
August 14, 2019
Wow! This is a clever wordless book.

A young child is camping and goes out in the dark to explore using a flashlight. The flashlight reveals plants and insects, bats and birds, and a whole range of living things. My description is really not doing this book justice. The illustrations are really quite wonderful and it makes me want to go explore the woods more carefully at night.
Profile Image for Alessandra S..
302 reviews12 followers
March 1, 2024
Un libro álbum muy lindo e interactivo. Esta es la historia de un niño con una linterna mágica explorando el bosque, perseguido por animales curiosos.
529 reviews
October 30, 2022
Love this picture book. The world is dark; illuminated only by the rising moon and a young boy’s flashlight which reveals animals along with plants and a few birds and insects doing what they do in the dark.
Profile Image for Flora.
66 reviews12 followers
February 9, 2018
The story depicts the journey of a young boy through a dark forest at night, and the various creatures of the night that he encounters. The book features a clever use of cutouts to highlight small details that you might've missed the first time around.
Profile Image for Barbara.
14.9k reviews316 followers
August 19, 2014
I enjoyed the author's earlier Inside Outside quite a lot, and I was not disappointed in this follow-up to that picture book. The author relies on a dramatically dark background to serve as a backdrop for small observations during a backyard camping trip or perhaps one that is a little further away from home than that. His flashlight reveals all sorts of scenes in nature; for instance, its light shows bats winging their way through the night in search of insects, two skunks heading for a stream, and a beaver busily fashioning its dam. After he stumbles over a rock, the animals turn the tables on him. This wordless picture book needs no words, and the clever use of varied sizes of die-cuts that are placed throughout the book plus the gouache illustrations that are filled with delicate depictions of nature's flora and fauna make this a delight to read. I also liked the primarily black endpapers very much.
Profile Image for Linda .
4,190 reviews52 followers
September 20, 2014
This makes me want to do a study of the magical things that one can discover by entering the forest dark. A young boy puts up a tent in the forest one night, and through his use of a flashlight, discovers the “night” is alive. After a while, a surprising thing happens, and he too becomes part of the discoveries. Each time I read through this wordless picture book, I saw more. With each page turned, Lizi Boyd gathers what’s been seen, showing through a cut hole, a tiny peek at what’s next. What a wonderful book! It would be fun to do a study of the dark, pairing this with Lemony Snicket’s The Dark!
Profile Image for Donna Nix.
413 reviews2 followers
January 11, 2015
This is a nice way to feature night creatures, but the book didn't work all that well for me. The peek-a-boo holes aren't that exciting or interesting. It was hard to figure out what some of the animals are, especially the babies. There is LOTS of detail on every spread, but some isn't entirely logical. For example, birch trees that are white although the moon is behind them, and the flashlight is not shining on them. I'm also not sure what age this is intended for. It seems like preschool/primary, but the detailed illustrations suggest a little older to have the patience needed to explore the detail. Liked it, didn't love it.
Profile Image for Kenneth.
147 reviews1 follower
January 3, 2019
Great concept. Books with no words are always enjoyable. This book shed light on animals in the forest after a boy gets lost camping. The illustrations are nice and the secret spots in the book are fun to find.
Profile Image for Margaret.
2,800 reviews
September 7, 2014
Flashlight (Chronicle Books) a wordless vision by author illustrator Lizi Boyd is one child's adventurous exploration of the night.

Certain to be a bedtime classic whether sleeping inside or outside Flashlight is a masterful work of art. Lizi Boyd elevates simple to superb. I would plan on having multiple copies. This is sure to be discussed in Mock Caldecott groups.

My full recommendation: http://bit.ly/1sYGDUy
Profile Image for Mary.
3,602 reviews10 followers
January 1, 2015
A clever wordless picture book about a young child exploring the outside at night with a flashlight. The gray and white drawings on black pages beautifully capture the magic and wonder of the nighttime wildlife. This is a book with a rich visual narrative that will inspire nighttime walks with a flashlight.
Profile Image for Jan Polep.
695 reviews7 followers
May 26, 2015
Marketed as a visual poem for the preschool crowd, this picture book about what can be spied with a flashlight outside at night has so much going on that kids will say, "Again!" the minute you finish it. Better buy aome batteries for your flashlights because that's the next thing the kids will want to do.
Profile Image for Peninnah.
196 reviews5 followers
September 12, 2015
This book is perfect if your little one is afraid of the dark or if you're going on your first camping trip. It's a charming book about overnight adventures. It features no text, making it fun for even the youngest readers. Each page features clever cut outs so small readers may need to be supervised.
Profile Image for Kelsey.
2,354 reviews66 followers
August 14, 2014
Age: Preschool-1st grade

Boyd uses a remarkable and imaginative use of negative art as a boy casts his flashlight across the forest revealing the color hidden in the night. The pages are full of action and different objects, encouraging the reader to pause and explore the scenery.
Profile Image for Amanda.
3,883 reviews43 followers
September 23, 2014
I'm sure that people are going to fall all over themselves drooling for this book and it will probably get all sorts of buzz for a Best Book of the Year, but I just didn't feel it. I liked it, don't get me wrong, but I just didn't LOVE it like everyone else seems to. Meh.
Profile Image for Janet.
3,670 reviews37 followers
February 18, 2015
The end flap says "using a spare palette". Well the palette may be sparse, but the effect of using color for only what the flashlight depicts in the nighttime is stunning and such a different perspective than I have seen. A highly creative book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 450 reviews

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