- City of Light, City of Dark
-
City of Light, City of Dark 
Cover art for City of Light, City of Dark
Art by Brian FlocaAuthor(s) Avi Illustrator Brian Floca Language English & Spanish Genre(s) Fantasy, Parallel Universe Publisher Scholastic Publication date 1993 Media type Print (Hardcover & Paperback) ISBN ISBN 0-531-07058-1 (Paperback edition) OCLC Number 57217749 City of Light, City of Dark is a comic book novel written by Newbery Medal-winning author Avi, and was the first book ever to be illustrated by Brian Floca.[1] Additional Spanish translations were done by Jose Aranda and Anthony Trujillo. The book's title is probably inspired by the summer and winter solstices, the "lightest" and "darkest" days of the year. These two days also mark two pivotal events in the Kurbs' "ritual cycle of acknowledgment". Alternatively, since the story is set in New York, "City of Light" could refer to one of the many cities of light.
Contents
Plot synopsis
An enigmatic race of beings known as the Kurbs are introduced at the story's outset. Except as serpentine extensions of shadow, they are rarely seen, and thrive only in darkness. Utilizing something called the Power, they are able to control the rhythm of day and night. When humans first arrived on Manhattan Island (a place of apparent significance to the Kurbs), a treaty was signed: the Ritual Cycle of Acknowledgment. The Kurbs would loan the island out for human use, and even share their source of power. But there were conditions: in synchronization with the summer and winter solstices, the source of Power would be ritualistically hidden somewhere on the island, and if it was not found in time, the Kurbs would reclaim the island, and everything would freeze. Over the years, the Power was hidden inside different objects, including an ear of corn, a musket ball, an oil lamp and, most recently, a subway token. A lineage of women were given the responsibility of carrying out the Ritual Cycle of Acknowledgment, and were granted special powers through the Kurbs' source of power, as well.
Style
City of Light, City of Dark is both a comic book and a novel. It begins like an illustrated storybook: paragraphs of text are accompanied by frequent illustrations, establishing the backstory more quickly than would have been possible with sequential art alone. Comic book panels tell the rest of the story, occasionally helped along by the author's narrations, which are presented in the form of captions. This method of storytelling makes City of Light, City of Dark unique. Brian Floca's franco-Belgian-inspired art style and frequent cross-hatching also give this modern fantasy an appropriately contemporary feel.
Notes
- The subway token which holds the "Power" created by the Kurbs is what forms the primary conflict in City of Light, City of Dark. According to the Kurbs, the token's chief purpose is to be a supplier of power (although they probably mean energy) to Manhattan island, in order to generate light and heat for all the humans who reside there. This plot detail is never fully explained. Since the energy in Manhattan is actually supplied by Consolidated Edison, and would not be in the least bit endangered by the loss of a single subway token, this leads to the conclusion that City of Light, City of Dark is actually set in a parallel universe. The mysterious energy inside the token is presumably the source of all kinds of superhuman abilities displayed by the characters, and anyone who touches it will have access to them. Some of these abilities are as follows:
- Enhanced vision (sometimes even to the extent of x-ray vision). It is also implied (though never confirmed) that the token can restore sight to someone who has gone blind (one of the reasons why Mr. Underton wanted it).
- Human flight.
- Levitation of inanimate objects.
- Clairvoyance, or the ability to see something outside of one's normal field of vision. This ability is limited: the token-holder can only see someone they know: all other human figures will not be recognizable.
- The ability to place phone calls (significant only because at the time of the book's publication, cell phones were not yet in widespread use.)
References
- ^ "www.brianfloca.com - Brian Floca's personal biography". http://www.brianfloca.com/Bio.html. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
Categories:- Graphic novels
- Novels by Avi
- The subway token which holds the "Power" created by the Kurbs is what forms the primary conflict in City of Light, City of Dark. According to the Kurbs, the token's chief purpose is to be a supplier of power (although they probably mean energy) to Manhattan island, in order to generate light and heat for all the humans who reside there. This plot detail is never fully explained. Since the energy in Manhattan is actually supplied by Consolidated Edison, and would not be in the least bit endangered by the loss of a single subway token, this leads to the conclusion that City of Light, City of Dark is actually set in a parallel universe. The mysterious energy inside the token is presumably the source of all kinds of superhuman abilities displayed by the characters, and anyone who touches it will have access to them. Some of these abilities are as follows:
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
