Last Night

by Hyewon Yum

A little girl doesn't like her dinner and is sent to her room. She seeks comfort from her friend Bear and falls asleep. So begins a fantastic dream voyage deep into the forest, where the girl and her friend dance and play all night. And in the morning, mother and child make up. With brilliant linocut illustrations and not a single word to break the spell, this picture book marks an impressive American debut for Hyewon Yum.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Fantasy, Graphic Novels

40 pages, Hardcover

First published September 30, 2008

About the author

Hyewon Yum is the author and illustrator of several acclaimed books for children. She has received the Society of Illustrator's Founder's Award, the Ezra Jack Keats New Illustrator Award, an Honorable Mention for the Bologna Ragazzi Award, and the Golden Kite Award for her work. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really appreciate this book although I cannot say I especially enjoyed it. The art style just didn't suit me. But, it's a neat wordless story about a little girl who is sent to her room for not eating all of her dinner--and about how her teddy bear grows and takes her on a magical adventure (reminded me a bit of Totoro!) I believe Yum won some awards for her artwork, so I'm sure there are many who will love this book.

[Marcia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wordless book that seemed vaguely familiar; reminiscent of Where the Wild Things Are maybe. A little girl doesn't like her dinner and is sent to bed....she has an adventure and then wakes up.
The linocut illustrations take center stage and add a bit of mystery--but they do keep your attention. This book got a lukewarm reception from grade 2.

[Brianna Owoc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Last Night is a complete illustration book with a unique art style. The book captures the sadness of the young girl by different techniques. You are able to see the imagination of a young girls mind. There are no words in the book leaving the story in the mind of the reader. The story is a good book for young children to use their imagination to create the story.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Golden Kite Award for PB Illustration (2009)

Beautiful wood-cut illustrations tell the story of a girl and her adventures with her animal friends. Very cute read.

[Amy Layton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't even think of this book as similar to Where the Wild Things Are until somebody else brought it up.  I think the two are pretty dang different despite the thematic similarities.  Yum's art is just as incredible as always, and I love the fact that this book is wordless--you can easily feel the intensity through just the art itself.  I mean, truly: look at that side-eye in the cover artwork!  Overall, it's a fun, fantastic story that's perfect for a pre-bedtime ritual.

Review cross-listed here!

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was not expecting this title to be a wordless picture book as the format is not a favorite of mine. However, it was the full page linocut illustrations that got my attention and one could easily see what the story sequence was in this title. Loved it.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

What adventures can be had after bedtime? This wordless picture book with a small trim size is perfect for children who haven't mastered reading yet, as well as older children.

[Tina Hoggatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yum lets the funkiness do the talking in this print generated, wordless picture book about a girl and her bear in the night.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ages 4 and up. When a little girl is sent to bed early for disobeying, she cuddles her teddy bear who soon grows into a real bear and brings her on a dreamy adventure. Highly stylized print illustrations accompany this story, set in an East Asian family.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wordless book tells the story of a little girl who is sent to bed after she refuses her dinner. As she dozes off her stuffed bear grows life-sized and the two of them go off to have adventures in the forest together. When she returns home after a long night, she rushes down the stairs from her room to find and hug her mother. As other reviewers have said, the plot is very reminiscent of Where the Wild Things are (what is with everyone sending their kids to bed without dinner?).

The linocut illustrations were at times a little hard for my 3 year old to make out, but it gave us a chance to discuss the illustrations and what we saw so it wasn't really a problem. While he enjoyed this book, he didn't latch onto it like he has other wordless books (Chalk being an all-time favorite).

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Last Night by Hyewon Yum is a wordless picture book about a girl sent to bed early after she refuses to eat her dinner. That night she and her toy bear have an adventure.

The child, lead by her now full-sized bear dance in the forest and then go exploring. All of this adventure is left to interpretation as it's told strictly through Yum's colorful linocut illustrations.

Though the child doesn't come home from her adventures, she wakes in her bed. Either it was a dream or her magical bear brought her home. Refreshed and rejuvenated, the girl makes up with her mother.
It's a nice celebration of a child's imagination and a gentle reminder to parents that sometimes that grouchy child just needs extra rest or time alone.

[e · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was immediately drawn to this picture book while picking through the hurricane that is the children's section at the bookstore where I work. There are no words, yet the story unfolds through these linocut prints, in a poetic outpouring of silence. There is an unassuming beauty to this book that goes beyond just being 'cute', and I think it is capable of captivating anyone. Some of the most wonderful illustrations I have seen in some time: giant owls! bears gobbling fish! A creature bonfire! I wish I had this book when I was a kid.

[Emmeline Guest · Rating 5 out of 5]

Worth buying.

A sweetly illustrated word-less story.

The block-print style illustrations are stunning, and the wordless story about a young girl unhappy with her dinner unfolds into a most magical journey - as the young girls stuffed bear comes to life and takes her on a moonlit adventure.

The story is easy to alter - my four year old son and I have created endless amount of silly, scary, love filled, vegetable hating stories from this book.

A gorgeous and magical book - that proves less really can be more.

[Christine Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sent to her room for refusing to eat her dinner, a little girl soon falls asleep and together with her bear friend begins a fantastic voyage deep into the forest where they dance and play all night.

Subjects

Stories without words

Dreams -- Juvenile fiction

Toys -- Juvenile fiction

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young girl does not like her dinner and is sent to her room. She falls asleep holding her stuffed bear and imagines he comes to life life-size. They escape to the woods and have adventures all night long. In the morning, she is happy to see her mother. Linocut illustrations depict the story. An okay story, but nothing that stands out.

[Megan Morris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book was good. It could be read by anyone because it has no words. The pictures let you tell the story and interpret the book by yourself. The story told by the pictures was alright but I didn't really like it all that much. Young children would love this book. It would let the child use their imagination and make their own story.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

0-7. I've already forgotten the details of this wordless book, yet I just flipped theough it today. Little girl refuses to eat, gets sent upstairs...goes to bed and her toy bear becomes real. apparently reminiscent of Where the Wild Things Are. The illustrations are nice...in a dark palatte.

[Dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

When our daughters saw this book, they said, "Another book without words!" They were so excited to be able to tell me the story, instead of the other way around. This is a fun book to "read" aloud and start up a conversation with your children.

[MissInformation · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wordless picturebook, with the story of a little girl who refuses to eat her dinner and gets sent to bed. She seeks the comfort of her teddy bear, who takes her on adventures at first fun, then increasingly arduous. Will she be able to get back home?

[Karen C · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wordless story with a plot somewhat similar to Where the Wild Things Are (except forest animals instead of monsters). Expressions on the girl character are pretty good and make the wordless thing work.

[Megan M · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wordless book telling the story of a young girl's magical adventure with a teddy bear come alive. It's sort of weird mix between Where The Wild Things Are and My Neighbor Totoro. The art is very unique and not really my favorite, though I can see how it lends an otherworldly feel to the story.

[mauvemagnolia]

It reminds me of a wordless 'Where the Wild Things Are'. The art is indistinct and lends an other worldly quality to the story. The girl's facial expressions are subtle yet tell the story quite completely, especially the first image of a girl upset with her dinner. :D

[Shianne Cokely · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute wordless book about a girl who struggles to fall asleep. It is another good book to encourage imagination in young kids. I also liked that she sleeps with her stuffed animal.. I mean I still do that!

[Ruben Salamanca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading a book with no words is cool because you get the luxury of admiring the art work more. The style of art was very nice and kept me engaged. The story allows you to use a little of your own imagination to fill in some missing pieces.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely wordless story of nighttime adventures with a plush-who-becomes-real friend. Reminds me a little of Briggs' The Snowman. The simple, block prints are effective, but look a little washed out.

[Skylar Burris · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute, wordless story that lets the child "write" his or her own story to go with the pictures. Slightly creepy, though I don't think it was meant to be.

[Molly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wordless picture book depicts a girls night/dreams after being sent to bed early. There is plenty going on with each page to keep good listeners/'imaginers' occupied.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

More a meditation on imagination and art than a story it is a lovely wordless book with wonderful illustrations - prints actually. A lovely little book.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

These illustrations are sweet. A great wordless story of a young girl and her Teddy bear going out into the dark forest at night. Ages 3+

[Stacy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a wordless picture book. It reminded me of where the wild things are. I enjoyed the illustrations.