Mysterious stranger brings wonderfully artistic surprises in The Night Gardener
Living on Grimloch Lane sounds gloomy enough; calling the Grimloch Orphanage home just adds to the misery. But even the dreariest place can take on magical proportions in the hands of an artist, and a child with an observant eye is often the first to recognize that magic.
Eric and Terry Fan, two brothers who live in Toronto and studied at the Ontario College of Art, have joined forces to produce The Night Gardener, a picture book aimed at ages 4 to 8, but certain to lift the hearts of a much wider age group.
Jointly credited for the ( brief ) text and detailed art ( somewhat reminiscent of such early Maurice Sendak work as Kenny’s Window), the brothers Fan employ a subdued palette as befits the title of their story, and open with a double- page spread in sepia tones that sets the stage. It shows a stretch of Grimloch Lane, apparently set in the 1930s or ’ 40s, judging from the cars and the clothing. The people on the street look burdened and tired. All except a figure to the left of the two- page spread; carrying a ladder under one arm, a rolled- up tarp over his shoulder, and a tree branch that serves as a walking stick in his right hand, he is moving briskly up the street.
He passes the orphanage, where a boy is sitting on a log, using a stick to draw an owl in the dirt, and by nightfall, while others sleep, he goes to work. With a glowing moon overhead, the mysterious stranger sets up his ladder, spreads the tarp and lays out his tools: clippers of varying sizes, a curved knife and a pair of gardening gloves. On the title page, we see that he is using them on a tree outside the orphanage.
In the morning, William, the orphan boy, is drawn to his window by commotion on the street. Looking out, he is astonished, like others in the neighbourhood, to see that a “wise owl had appeared overnight, as if by magic.” He’s mesmerized by the sight, and suddenly he’s not alone; other children come to stare, and a neighbour shows up with a camera. Something is definitely happening on Grimloch Lane, and William is filled with excitement that night as he wonders what will happen next.
Chances are, the youngster with whom you share this book will be just as keen to find out. And as the pages turn, the pieces of topiary art that take over the neighbourhood are prompting people to interact. Children are playing outside, neighbours are fixing up their houses and talking about the beautiful trees, eagerly awaiting the next surprise. And when the night gardener turns a pair of trees into a Chinese dragon, kids climb the boughs to fly a bright red kite and nestle in the leaves. At night, neighbours hang lanterns from the branches, and the whole street takes on a festive air.
That night, William spots a stranger and follows him. At Grimloch Park, the man turns, and William realizes it’s the night gardener. He invites the boy to help him and together they transform the trees in the park. “Under the light of a full moon, they worked deep into the night.” And when William falls asleep, the night gardener covers him with his coat, and leaves him a gift — one that sets the boy on a new path, staving off loneliness.
Because creating something beautiful, and sharing it with others, will do that for a person.
This book is something beautiful.
The Night Gardener
By Eric and Terry Fan Simon & Schuster, 42 pages, $ 21.99 Ages 4 to 8