The Forests of the Night the war as it really was, as James Kirkup observed, an "acid portrait of those who played at being members of the [French] Resistance". The novel's theme and title come from the opening lines to William Blake's poem "The Tyger": "Tiger, tiger, burning bright - in the forests of the night." "The Forests of the Night" was translated in 1951 into English by Nora Wydenbruck; it has not been re-printed since. Francis is the son of the Comte de Balansun, whose family resides in the French town of Saint-Clar, near the Pyrenees. Francis, in the beginning of the novel, skips
In the Forests of the Night but is mentioned several times. In 2008, Alexander makes an appearance in the novel, "Persistence of Memory" but Risika does not but it is mentioned that there is an issue going on between Risika and Alexander during the events of the novel. "In the Forests of the Night" was applauded as "Insightful...and imaginative" by "Publishers Weekly" and "remarkable" by "Voice of Youth Advocates". "San Diego Union-Tribune" called the novel "An impressive debut". "School Library Journal" praised it stating "This first novel by an author with great ability and promise is sure to be popular." "Booklist" stated that because of Atwater-Rhodes