A book review :- The Dark by Lemony Snicket

So, from time to time I randomly choose books to review. 
Sometimes I have never read them before....which is the case with
The Dark by Lemony Snicket, illustrated by Jon Klassen.


I was attracted to the 'dark' cover of the book, the illustrations were different and it made me very curious as to what the story was about.





I know a lot of children are afraid of the dark and I thought this might be a book to help them overcome that fear.  However, after reading it I'm a little confused as to whom the book is intended for.  I don't think I would read this book to a small child who is afraid of the dark.....I honestly found it a little creepy.....but that's just me!  I'd be interested to hear what other people have to say about it.

Anyway the story is about a small boy, Laszlo, who is afraid of the dark......but the dark is not afraid of poor old Laszlo.  Laszlo lives in what appears to be a large house with not much furniture and no sign of any parents.  While I love the illustrations that are painted in gauche I do find that they give the impression of a creepy, haunted house and a poor little boy all alone.

So back to the story, one night, it appears that Laszlo's night light bulb goes out and of course the dark creeps into his room (usually it stays mostly in the basement).  The dark lures Laszlo out of his room with a flashlight to explore the house and leads him down to the basement.

What happens next?  Well......I could say you'll have to find the book to see what happens but I'm not sure I would recommend spending $16.99 on this one.  So......the dark tells Laszlo to open a drawer and it shows him where the supply of night light bulbs are!!!!!  And voila, a certain little boy is not afraid of the dark anymore.  I know I know I can see your frowning faces.....it's odd!

If you're curious about this book I would suggest spend 5 mins checking it out in a bookstore or library before committing to the purchase!