Is stating the conflict enough for an issue-based book, or should conflict resolution be given equal, if not more, weightage? This question stayed with me as I reached the end of Vibha Batra and Sahitya Rani’s Lights Out.

This is a short yet striking picture book about a little boy, Karthik, and his crusade to save a sparrow (a rare sight) and her eggs nesting in the junction box of the village. The eggs would lose their fighting chance to survive if the streetlights are switched on. But, if left off, the entire village would have to contend with darkness – and some of its inhabitants aren’t willing to do so.

The story follows a simple narrative, with words and illustrations that help readers create a world without imagining it for them. One feels Appa and Salim Sir’s passion for saving the sparrow eggs without being told that they are compassionate. One also sees Karthik discovering that something is not quite right with the way humans tend to treat animals, and how it is up to those who respect all lives to speak up for creatures who have no voice of their own. Readers walk alongside Karthik as he makes these discoveries. However, they may lose their way in the second phase of his journey when he goes about converting the naysayers.

Karthik goes from house to house ringing doorbells, but one doesn’t know what he says to people when they open the door. It may be argued that not everything needs to be stated outright, and I agree. Readers don’t need to be told that the villagers are frustrated without the streetlights – one can tell they are, especially when they get lost in the dark or fall into a ditch. But some ideas, particularly those encouraging ecological empathy, need words. The reader, in this case presumably a child, deserves to know exactly what was said to change people’s hearts and minds. What were the words, for example, that made Senthil’s father, who staunchly opposed switching off the streetlights, not only give up his convenience for the little sparrows but also become a champion of the cause? Readers would truly benefit from seeing a character say heartfelt, logical, passionate or even angry words. Furthermore, it is important for children to read stories where children like themselves articulate their arguments, expressing what they feel. 

This brings me back to the question asked at the beginning of the review – once we know what the issue is, how much focus do we give to its resolution? To me, conflict resolution is a whole lot more important than describing the issue. Stories that show how people stood up have a greater impact than stories that simply tell us that people stood up. Although it skips over this central element, Lights Out strikes a deep chord. Its nuanced storytelling sensitively captures a true event in Pothakudi, a village in Tamil Nadu, without dramatising it and without villainising anyone. The story has even made its way to France, inspiring another book, Les Oiseaux électriques de Pothakudi by Joëlle Jolivet and Karthika Nair. Clearly, stories that capture the imagination transcend region and language – revealing a side of humanity that is often self-serving but does sometimes see the ​‘light’.

About the reviewer:

Archana Atri is the founder of one of the first indie book clubs for children – AA’s Book Nerds – and is now working towards setting up a national network of children’s book clubs. She has also founded Adi’s Corner, a first-of-its-kind reading space in the paediatric oncology facility of a children’s hospital in the NCR.