Review: Susan Cooper and Carson Ellis Drive the Darkness Away in The Shortest Day

The darkness of winter always seems to creep in like an unwanted houseguest. The air grows cold and brittle, the treeless forest seems to shiver along with us, and the daylight dwindles despite our protests. “So the shortest day came, and the year died,” whispers Susan Cooper in her picture book, The Shortest Day. It is this descent into winter darkness that The Shortest Day, gorgeously illustrated by Carson Ellis, captures, and ultimately shows us how to celebrate. Cooper’s spare and beautiful poem traces the ways in which humans, both ancient and modern, have celebrated the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, with symbols, songs, and light. She tells of evergreen boughs hung in warm homes, candles in windows, and fires burning all night long fueled by songs and revelry amongst friends—images that glow with coziness against the sharp, cold backdrop of winter. Likewise, Ellis’ lovely watercolor and gauche illustrations conjure scenes that burn brightly not in spite of, but because of, the darkness. The warm oranges, yellows, and peach tones of the flames and sun bursts in her illustrations swim in backgrounds of cool grays and blues. In one particularly striking illustration, a circle of friends dancing around a fire is completely surrounded by a dark violet forest teeming with ghostly nature spirits. This contrast between light and dark, warmth and winter, safety and precarity is the books most precious message—it is only because of the darkness that we can can better appreciate the beauty of the light. Magical, mysterious, and warm, The Shortest Day is a perfect picture book to read on the winter solstice or any winter day when you find yourself struggling to see the beauty of our darkest season. Pair this book with the planning of your own winter welcome celebration, and delight in deciding how you will drive the darkness away.