In the Night Still Dark

by Richard Lewis

A poetic description, adapted from the Kumulipo, a traditional Hawaiian creation chant, of how in the darkest night were born the simplest creatures, then with the breaking of dawn more complex ones, and finally people and day.

Genres: Poetry

32 pages, Hardcover

First published May 30, 1988

Reviews

[Robin B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the Night, Still Dark encapsulates a tiny portion of the Kumulipo (the Hawaiian Creation Chant) into a child friendly and image heavy format. Ed Young's exceptionally dark, minimalistic and vibrant illustrations are the heart of this book. His use of pastels to barely suggest shapes in the black that are then flushed out fully by the reader is phenomenal.

However, the text of the book is an adaptation by Richard Lewis which he adapted from tertiary sources, further distancing the text of the Kumulipo from it's original form. In fact, the blurb of the front jacket flap directly states it is an adaptation. In the bibliography you can also see that Lewis adapted his version from a truncated version by Maria Leach, which was in turn adapted from a translation by Martha Beckwith. Martha Beckwith did not speak Hawaiian. For her adaptation she needed the aid of a translator.

If you are looking to teach your child an accurate, or traditional form of the Kumulipo for cultural reasons this book is not for you. But for beautiful prose and captivating illustrations that will capture your child's attention this version of the Kumulipo is hard to beat.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poetic text, taken from a Hawaiian Creation chant, details how the lifeforms on Earth came to exist from the deepest oceans to man.

Pastel illustrations make excellent use of negative space. I could look at this book over and over and over... Must see!