...there is always light in the darkness...

Ms. Krommes, 53, who has been illustrating books for 10 years, said she used the so-called scratchboard technique to make the drawings for “The House in the Night,” published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. She uses heavy cardboard paper stock covered in black ink and scratches away the black to make drawings. Nell Colburn, chairwoman of the Caldecott Committee, said the technique perfectly illuminated the message of “The House in the Night,” which, Ms. Colburn said, “tells the child that there is always light in the darkness.” - New York Times