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In a tiny Texas town in
1897, little Willie Johnson was born on a bright, sunny
January day.
Willie's family didn't
have much money, and so when he was a small boy and his
parents noticed how Willie loved to sing, his father made a
guitar for him from a cigar box and a wooden board. The boy
would strum and sing all day long, and that's how Willie
Johnson learned to play the guitar.
But then "some light went
out of [his] life..." His Mama died, and not long after
that, when Willie was "seven or eight," he went blind.
So Willie couldn't see,
but that didn't stop his voice, did it? No, he could still
sing in church and at home, and "on street corners." He
could still strum his guitar – a real one now, one
that could sound like it was "laughing or crying" – and he
played his audiences "the way a preacher would."
And that's what he did: he
traveled by train, into towns where cotton farmers gathered
on Saturday mornings, and he'd sing raspy and powerful,
making his guitar laugh and cry and people would put a few
coins in a cup so that Willie Johnson had something for
supper and a place to lay his head for another night. He
played and played until one day, a man came to hear Willie
sing, and the man offered to make a new thing called
phonograph records and pretty soon, everybody knew the name
of Willie Johnson. He was "a shining star."
That was true almost 100
years ago. And it's still true today...
For the older child who
hears this story at bedtime – and Dark Was the Night
makes an excellent bedtime tale, by the way – there may be
some question. How can a century-old story still be
relevant?
The answer lies in author
Gary Golio's afternotes. There, he explains that when NASA
sent Voyager I into space some 40 years ago, included
was a time capsule of audio clips, and Johnson's song with
the same title as this book.
Nice to know, but your
child is likely to care much more about Johnson's life
story, which is inspirational and shows the strength of will
and talent, despite adversity. There's also magic in this
book, which comes in E.B. Lewis' washed-watercolor
illustrations: alone, they tell a wordless tale that appears
as sad, elated, or determined, all of which are perfect for
children who are pagers more than readers.
Older preschoolers may
enjoy this book, but starwatchers up to age eight will love
it best. Find it – then sneak Dark Was the Night in
before lights out.
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