The Darkest Dark

Starred review from July 4, 2016
Canadian astronaut Hadfield and collaborator Fillion tell the story of young Chris, who loves space but can’t bear his own room once the lights are out. It’s 1969, and Chris’s parents tell him that if he can’t stay in his own bed, he won’t be able to go watch the moon landing on the neighbor’s TV the following evening. The moon landing is mind-boggling in itself, but something even more important catches Chris’s attention: “He’d never really noticed how dark it was there. Outer space was the darkest dark ever.” This new dark holds infinite promise, and it makes the ordinary dark of his bedroom less daunting. The Fan brothers (The Night Gardener) switch easily between fantasy elements (furry aliens with glowing eyes lurk in Chris’s bedroom) and documentary images (the snowy pictures of the moon landing on the neighbors’ TV screen). The idea that a famous astronaut was once afraid of the dark may win some recalcitrant bed-goers’ hearts, and readers with dreams of space travel will jump at this. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Rick Broadhead, Rick Broadhead & Associates. Illustrators’ agent: Kirsten Hall, Catbird Agency.

Astronaut, author, and narrator Chris Hadfield KNOWS. He knows about the terrifying darkness of his childhood room and the deepest darkness of outer space. This intimate knowledge radiates from his narration. Listeners sense the fear in young Chris as he and his parents do battle at bedtime over the necessity for him to stay in his room, which is "very, very dark." Rest is needed by all so they'll be able to view a special event the following night on the neighbors' TV. This event inspires Chris's dream of being an astronaut and his life's work in the "darkest dark" of space. Would that his wonder at the majesty of the dark and the power of dreams inspires us all. An afterword from Col. Hadfield concludes the production. A.R. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine