The Big Book of Slumber

PreS—This quiet bedtime story told in rhyming couplets reveals a wide range of fish, birds, insects, rodents, and other animals as they sleep. "Hushaby, hushaby, such comfy beds./All of these creatures are resting their heads." With a mix of indoor furniture and outdoor leaves, flowers, and trees, the book imparts a dreamlike state, appropriate to its peaceful topic. Couches, chairs, and even the ground are shown to be suitable places for repose, through images that depict animals of all kinds, from seals settled in treetop beds to a mouse, a mole, and a spider asleep in the cellar to a bird resting in a hammock. The large, ingenuous illustrations, done in paint and collage, have a naive, folklike quality. Bold patterns, including stripes, checks, patchwork, blossoms, and vines, decorate every page while still maintaining a soothing atmosphere. This title exudes tranquility and has the ability to calm a restless child at bedtime.—Maryann H. Owen, Children's Literature Specialist, Mt. Pleasant, WI