Reviewed by Alice DiNizo for Readers' Favorite

Daniel J. Porter is the author of twenty-two books for children and now he has put his pen to a book that no reader should skip. In "'Til the Street Lights Come On: Lessons Learned from Neighborhood Games", Porter tells of a time when children didn't have scheduled play dates or planned activities but played games of all sorts with the other children in their neighborhood. And, in playing those street-version games of soccer, basketball, baseball, football, and whatever came to mind, the author reminds the reader that children inspired, mentored, celebrated and tolerated each other. Accepting each other's differences and teaching each child not to be self-conscious of limitations was the norm in those neighborhood games. Every child living in a neighborhood was expected to be out and about, not hiding away and ashamed of limitations. Porter tells that he was born with dystonia, the nation's most common muscle movement disorder, but with the lessons he learned from neighborhood games, he has gone on to not just being a published author but a speaker as well. On page 4 of "'Til the Street Lights Come On", Daniel Porter tells the reader that "I think we lost something when outdoor neighborhood play disappeared."

"'Til the Streetlights Come On: Lessons Learned from Neighborhood Games" is a highly well-written and totally welcome addition to book shelves everywhere. That Daniel Porter didn't walk well until he was three, didn't master riding a bike until he was ten, and had trouble speaking aloud in class are dystonia disabilities that he was able to overcome through the lessons he learned from participating in neighborhood games. With black and white photographs taken by his wife, with short poems called Sand Scripts placed at each chapter's end, Daniel Porter has created a masterpiece, a testimonial to what was and should be brought back: neighborhood children playing naturally with each other, with no soccer moms or dads in sight.