IN THE DARK (Knopf, 40 pp., $18.99, ages 3 to 7), written by Kate Hoefler and illustrated by Corinna Luyken, does it gorgeously.Here is a story of woods and witches, brooms and bird kites, black ...

Great books change a reader. Maybe they transport readers to unexamined places, ... There is light in the darkness. The light within us all. Every precious moment. I know it.

In “A Light in the Darkness,” however, a paragraph or a page may be devoted to Rodrigo’s life, and then there may be long passages of musical analysis, some of it quite technical.

It becomes that light in the darkness… the very essence of our humanity. It is hope.” White Bird, p.186 “A Wish in the Dark” by Christina Soontornvat. I love a great fantasy story, but I find myself ...