Critic: Carmelita Cechetto-Shea

Recess in the Dark is a collectionof twenty-five poems (with two extra poems on the back cover) celebrating life in the far north. Written by Kalli Dakos and illustrated by Erin Mercer, this delightful and fun poetry collection is created from the perspective of children. Each poem provides the reader with a glimpse of life in the dark and cold.

The first poem A Warning for Wimpy Kids sets the stage for further reading; the poem tells readers not to venture to the north if they don’t like the cold and/or darkness. Once readers pass the “warning” poem, the poems detail many wonderful aspects of life in a cold and dark place. The children of the north seem to enjoy their environment, and show readers that you must make the best of where you are instead of complaining. It seems there is a reward for living in the north: the Northern Lights (aurora borealis), a magical and natural light display readers may wish they could see (like this reviewer).

Each poem is easy to read and would be excellent read a-louds. Many of the poems are presented on a two-page spread, with the poem on one page and the opposite page is where the author has included details providing more factual information connected to the poem (in smaller print). Each poem provides insight into what it would be like to play outside in the dark, in a place where “The Sun Won’t Shine”.

Readers can only imagine (or maybe even dream) about how life would be living in this area. In some poems, exaggerated words reflect the illustration it represents, such as the poem Marilyn’s Moon Question where a child is on a tire swing, and the word “moon” stretches across the page (with multiple letters “O”). Recess in the Dark includes poems on many topics of northern life: igloos, dog teams, rabbit mittens, etc. The final poem We Have Light brings the readers full circle to the realization that the darkness will disappear and the light will shine again.

Erin Mercer’s illustrations are breathtaking, offering dark star filled backgrounds with bright colors and children who are smiling at the extravaganza before them. It is obvious these children are enjoying where they live and don’t see the dark and cold as anything but a wonderful experience of life in the north. Ms. Mercer has used various types of techniques in creating the digital paintings: pencil, pastel and oil. Dark shades of blue and purple accentuate the night sky, while Northern Lights are created with brilliant greens. The children’s clothing is an array of many bright colours of the spectrum, like a rainbow. The moon’s yellow glows brightly as if a real lamp has been turned on especially when the reader turns the pages to reveal the double page spread in the poem Marilyn’s Moon Questions. The final two pages of he book have a glorious sunrise mixture of reds, purples and blue as the children now have light as winter fades and disappears.

The author’s dedication elaborates her intent in creating this book. The dedication isn’t just for those who were in the far north with her and the children at the school where she once taught who inspired her to write the poems. On one visit, Kalli Dakos encourages the children to write their own poems based on the wonderful life they experience living in the far north. She also dedicates the book to the children who will explore the land of recess in the dark through reading the poems. Recess in the Dark is a celebration of the wonders of living in an environment where the sunshine and darkness, although complete opposites, allow the characters (and readers) the privilege of admiring an extraordinary place. This anthology of poems is a quick and fun read, and may even have some readers pausing to think about what it would be like to live in the north (and going to school in the dark too). Then with the summer eliminating darkness every day (24 hours a day), readers learn about a place many children call home. Recess in the Dark is a delightful collection of poems that deserves a place in school and public library collections.