The House in the Night

The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson

Illustrated by Beth Krommes

Published by Houghton Mifflin Company

2008

     "Here is the key to the house. In the house burns a light. In that light rests a bed. On that bed waits a book."  As a girl picks up the book, her imagination takes flight on the wings of the bird that lays inside it, and she takes us all the way to the moon and back to "the house in the night, a home full of light."

     An old nursery rhyme collected in The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book (1955) begins with the verses: "This is the key of the kingdom: / In that kingdom is a city, / In that city is a town, / In that town there is a street..." (from Swanson's Author's note at the end of The House in the Night).  This nursery rhyme was the inspiration for Swanson's beautiful book.  The text follows a cumulative pattern and it takes you from the smallness of a key to the immensity of the sky and, then, backtracking, all the way back inside the house. 

     The House in the Night is a wonderful bedtime story, taking the readers on a journey to the vastness of the world, but always coming back to the comfort of the home and a warm bed.  The text is beautiful, no doubt about it, but the real stars for me are the illustrations by Beth Krommes.  They are nothing short of spectacular.  They are made scratchboard style and there is no color, all black and white except for splashes of gold to highlight specific objects (the sun, the moon, the lamp, the book, the teddy bear).  This is the kind of picture book that will stay with you because of its utter beauty.  Just gorgeous! 

    

Stars

Stars by Mary Lyn Ray
Illustrated by Marla Frazee
2011

     Stars appear in the sky, one by one, "and the dark that comes doesn't feel so dark."  You can't catch them but you can make your own with shiny paper, cut it out and keep it in your pocket.  There are many stars out there, like the one that shows you're the sheriff or the one at the end of your magic wand.  Snowflakes and flowers are also little stars.  And somedays you feel like a star, and others not so much.  But at the end of the day, you can put your PJs on, look up at the sky and know that even if you can't always see them, starts are there every night, every where.
     Stars is a beautiful book, perfect for bedtime.  Ray's text speaks to children with a honest tone while remaining lyrical.  Frazee's illustrations are spot on. Her portraits of children are delightful, and every page turn offers a new spread, with new tones and detailed expressions.  Lovely.

Creepy Monsters, Sleepy Monsters

Creepy Monsters, Sleepy Monsters by Jane Yolen

Illustrated by Kelly Murphy

2011

     The monsters in Creepy Monsters, Sleepy Monsters are just like any other kids.  They go to school -at Creepy P. Elementary school-  creeping and crawling.  They play outside, hip-hoping and tumbling.  They head back home slithering and waving.  The eat their dinner -worm burgers- and take a bath.  They even say their prayers and climb into bed.  And they don't like falling asleep right away either, "they toss and turn and bounce instead." Until finally they drift to sleep.

     Young readers of Creepy Monsters, Sleepy Monsters will delight in the funny character in the book, and will relate to the daily activities of the two main monsters.  The illustrations by Murphy are great, with a large array of different monsters in funny situations, sure to capture the attention of all the monster fans.  A cool and different bedtime story.

Hopper and Wilson

Hopper and Wilson by Maria Van Lieshout
2011

     Hopper the elephant and Wilson the mouse are best friends. One day, sitting on a pier looking out into the big blue sea, Hopper asked his little friend, "What do you think is at the end of the world?"  They are not sure what the answer might be, but one hopes there's lots of lemonade at the end of the world, and the other hopes there's a staircase to the moon.  They decided they needed to find out, so they packed their balloon with a red string, said good-bye to their cactus and jumped aboard their paper boat.  They sailed day and night until they got caught in the middle of a storm, lost their red ballon and were separated.  Wilson desperately looked for his friend until a bird that had followed their journey the whole time, guided Wilson using the red string from their lost balloon, and took him to Hopper.  The two friends are happily reunited and find the shore, where they can see lemon trees and...their cactus. "Aren't we lucky that our home is at the end of the world, Wilson?" "And at the beginning too!"
     Hopper and Wilson is a lovely tale of adventure and friendship.  The two characters are drawn as stuffed animals, where you can actually see the stitching run down their backs.  The illustration by Van Lieshout have a very tender feeling to them; beautiful watercolors outlined with black ink.  The blues and yellows of Hopper and Wilson, are mirrored by the blues of the ocean and sky and the yellows of the lemons and sunrises.  There are cute details to be savored during multiple reads, such as the bird that follows them along and shows up in every page until he comes to the forefront as the one that reunites the friends.  The paper boat they're sailing on is made of newspaper and the little portions that are readable all seem to connect with the theme of a journey ("highway," "three days by foot," "thick vegetation," "trail").  Lovely book to read aloud and sweet tale to read at bedtime.      

Cuddle Up, Goodnight

Cuddle Up, Goodnight by Katie Cleminson

2011

     From the time he's woken up by a loving elephant, til the time he's put to bed, Cuddle Up, Goodnight follows a young boy as he enjoys a day full of routines and activities always accompanied by different animal friends. He stretches with a cat, brushes his teeth with a hippo, gets dressed and heads to school.  There, he listens to a bear reading stories, paints with a dog, practices the violin with an octopus, plays hide a seek with a lemur, and eats with a lion.  As the day ends, the boy picks a book to read aloud to his animal friends, until it's time to cuddle up and "say goodnight, yawn and stretch, close your eyes, sleep and rest..." 

     Cuddle Up, Goodnight is written in simple rhyme text, with the repetition of the phrase "It's time to..."  It's cast of animal characters and the funny situations they are placed in (like a hippo slurping spaghetti) will delight young children.  The illustrations are sweet and entertaining.  Good bedtime book.  

Are You Awake?

Are You Awake by Sophie Blackall
2011

     As soon as I opened Are You Awake? and saw the image of a boy leaning over his sleeping mom and propping her eyelid open with his index finger, I was completely hooked.  Been there...and if you have young kids, I know you've been there too.  Edward rises in the middle of the night and wakes his mother up with the classic question:

Mom, are you awake?    
  MM-MM. No.
Why aren't you awake?
  Because I'm asleep.
Why are you asleep?
  Because it's still nighttime.
Why is it still nighttime?
  Because the sun hasn't come up yet.

     Edward has hundreds of questions ready to keep the conversation going all night, including "What does your face look like when you're asleep?" Eventually, his mom switches positions and begins asking the questions: "Do you like yellow?" "Why is it your favorite color?" "What are some yellow things?"

And my favorite part:

Dogs are yellow.
  No, they're not.
Yellow dogs are.

     Finally, mom goes on and on talking about things that are yellow, including a synesthesia-like description: "Some names sound yellow to me, like Peter, and some letters and numbers, like E and 3."  As she moves down the list, Edwards eyes slowly close, just as the yellowest thing begins to come through the window.

     Are You Awake? is tender and funny.  Parents will relate to the situation immediately and young kids will find themselves depicted in Edward's questions and movements around the bed.  Sophie Blackall's (Big Red Lollipop) illustrations are gorgeous with a classic look about them that match the topic and tone of the book beautifully.  This one gets added to my favorite books of the year bookshelf.

Darkness Slipped In

  

Darkness Slipped In by Ella Burfoot
2008

     "Daisy was thinking of a game to play when Darkness slipped in at the end of the day."  She was inside her bedroom, playing around and dancing, too distracted to notice Darkness coming in through the window and spreading out on the floor. "Pretending he wasn't there, he slid along the wall. But Daisy had seen Darkness and she wasn't scared at all."  Darkness took over the room and covered up the light, but Daisy never feared. She had a plan.  She reached and grabbed him by the wrist and made him dance the twist with her.  "Now Darkness comes in every night to dance and laugh and play" until is time to say good night and he lays Daisy down to bed.
   Darkness Slipped In is a beautifully designed bedtime story.  The contrast between the bright pinks of Daisy's room and the slick blacks of Darkness are striking.  Daisy's ability to disarm the Darkness and control her fears are a powerful example for all kids afraid of "lights out" time.  The book's rhymes flow with ease making it a very enjoyable read aloud.  Darkness' characterization and illustration is never scary and its shiny appearance and smooth texture is quite appealing.  Daisy is adorable. This is a wonderful book to share before bedtime.

Russell the Sheep

Russell the Sheep by Rob Scotton
2005

     Russell the sheep has a problem. After a long and busy day in the fields, all the sheep get ready for bed and are soon asleep.  All but Russell.  He tried everything to make himself sleepy; he covered his eyes with his cap, but was too afraid of the dark; he took his coat off, but then got too cold; he went for a walk to tire himself out and find a new spot to sleep, but the places he found were too cramped, too creepy or too crowded.  What if he tried counting things? He counted every star in the sky, but still nothing...he was wide awake. And then he decided to count sheep.  He counted all the sheep around him and still awake, "Russell realized he had forgotten to count one very important little sheep...himself!" Suddenly, he felt "a tickle, then a twitch, and then...sound asleep."  Too bad the sun was already coming up by then!
     Russell the Sheep is a fun bedtime story for those nights when the little ones at home just don't feel sleepy at all.  I love the illustrations by Rob Scotton and  I must confess that I've been tempted to get an extra copy of the book just so I can use the pages to decorate my kids's rooms.  Its blue and purple tones and the cotton like image of Russell have had a magical effect on my 4 year old during sleepless evenings.  Keep it close to your nightstand.    

The World Champion of Staying Awake

The World Champion of Staying Awake by Sean Taylor
Illustrated by Jimmy Liao
2011

     It's little Stella's time to go to sleep, but her three stuffed animals are wide awake.  There's Cherry Pig, Thunderbolt the mouse, and Beanbag Frog and they all want to be the World Champion of Staying Awake.  Stella's rich imagination helps her tire them out one by one. She first makes them ride on her pillow and imagine they are sailing on a boat:

The pillow ship rocks

the pillow ship sways

the pillow ship sails 

across the waves

     The adventure on the boat is just what Cherry Pig needed to get tired and fall asleep. One down, two to go.  Next, Stella puts mouse and frog inside a shoe box and imagines they are on a train:

And as it chugs

and clatters and steams,

the train will carry you 

into your dreams...

     Thunderbolt Mouse is now exhausted and becomes the "world champion...of going to sleep."  And now that leaves Beanbag Frog. So Stella puts him on a basket and imagines he's flying on a hot air balloon:

The starship balloon

flies off and away

leaving behind 

the last of today

    Beanbag Frog is finally out. "Not a croak. Not a bounce. Not a hoppety-hop."  Stella carries them all to her bed, tucks them in, and might have become the world champion of staying awake...but she falls asleep as soon as her head touches her pillow.
     The World Champion of Staying Awake is a sweet bedtime story that combines prose and poetry.  The illustrations are beautiful and the main character, Stella, is creative and charming.  Wonderful book to include amongst bedtime favorites.

Mitchell's License

Mitchell's License by Hallie Durand
Illustrated by Tony Fucile
2011

"Mitchell was three years, nine months, and five days old when he got his license." He never wanted to go to sleep so his dad came up with a master plan: to let Mitchell drive to bed. Mitchell's drivers license allows him to drive his dad all over the house by riding on his shoulders. He checked the car's tires (dad's shoes), the engine (through dad's belly button), the windshield (dad's glasses) and using dad's ears as his steering wheel, they take off running all over the house. Their final destination: Mitchell's bed. And so begins a new routine to be perfected night after night, always culminating with an exhausted dad and a sleepy Mitchell tucked safely in his bed.
Mitchell's License is a blast. Riding on dad's shoulders and pretending that he's a car is full of clever and funny situations. My son loves this book and all the funny images, like when Mitchell drives his father into a wall, or when he takes him to the gas station (the kitchen) to fill up (with chocolate chip cookies). The illustrations by Tony Fucile (who also illustrated Bink and Gollie by Kate diCamilo) are hilarious. This is a great book for fathers and sons to share at bedtime.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Truckery Rhymes

Truckery Rhymes by John Scieszka
Illustrated by David Shannon, Loren Long and David Gordon
2009

     Since today is Father's Day, I wanted to change it up a bit and instead of picking a book about a father and son, I decided to chose the book that my husband and son share most often: Truckery Rhymes.  Jon Scieszka's Trucktown characters take on traditional nursery rhymes with a twist.  Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star becomes "Rumble, Rumble, Monster Max. Can you jump those junkyard stacks?" There is also "Rock-a-Bye Mixer at the site top. When the wind blows, the building will rock."  Or my son's favorite: "Patty cake, patty cake, Dumper Dan. Dump me some dirt as fast as you can. Slide it and drop it and mark it DD, and pile it in the lot for Melvin and me."
     My boy loves the rhymes, not only because he already knows the rhythm from the classic ones, but because the trucks all have personalities and he truly becomes immersed in the Trucktown world.  This is more evident in the new version of The Wheels on the Bus, now titled The Wheels on the Truck.  It includes all the different types of trucks with all sorts of sounds which are a blast to read aloud and sing around the house; and at the end of the song, there is a display of all the different trucks that are part of Trucktown.
     This is the sort of book that becomes a family classic that the kids want to keep going back to even after the original fever dies down -when they will ask you to read it a million times a day- It's the book version of a blankie.  The illustrations are exciting as well and I love the fact that it can be read from cover to cover or just a couple of rhymes at a time.

Tell Me the Day Backwards

Tell Me the Day Backwards by Albert Lamb
Illustraded by David McPhail

     "Let's play that game we used to play that summer" says little Timmy Bear to Mama Bear as he gets ready for bedtime.  The game is to retell the day backwards.  Timmy Bear starts going back through all the details of his adventure filled day.   The day ended with a relaxing picnic but soon we find out that Timmy had a scary incident:  Papa Bear had to rescue Timmy Bear from the river.  As he retells the story, always prompted by Mama Bear asking "what happened before that?", we are able to reconstruct the whole day.
     Tell Me the Day Backwards is an exciting and sweet tale that will have you and the kids wanting to play the game yourselves during bedtime.   The watercolor illustrations are beautiful.   The story provides  a great exercise to use in the classroom as well, not only the idea of telling a story backwards, but following the cause and effect pattern throughout the retelling.

The Prince's Bedtime

The Prince's Bedtime by Joanne Oppenheim
Illustrated by Miriam Latimer
2007

     The Prince can't fall asleep.  Well, it's not that he can't, he just won't go to sleep. The Queen and King are at their wits's ends trying to find a way to get their prince to go bed. "If anyone knows how to make the prince rest, please come at once to the royal address!"  And so begins the parade: a  bearded physician with sleep medicine, a troupe of dancers, a mustached magician, a peasant carrying a stuffed quilt, jesters, jugglers, cooks...all trying to help the prince to fall asleep, but to no avail.  Then, an old woman came to the palace and the King asked "And what can you do? Do you dance? Can you sing? What's in your bag? What did you bring?"  The woman reached inside her bag, pulled out a book and told the prince "I'll read while you look."  "But where are the pictures?" "You'll see them if you just close your eyes."  And he did, and "he fell asleep for the night."
     The Prince's Bedtime is a great read aloud, and a fun bedtime story.  The illustrations are beautiful and the rhymes flow and never seem forced.  I love a good rhyming story! There is something intrinsically cool about reading a bedtime story about reading a bedtime story...kind of meta, right?

In a Blue Room

In a Blue Room by Jim Averbeck
Illustrated by Tricia Tusa
2008

     "In a blue room, Alice bounces, wide-awake past bedtime."  Her mom comes in and out of Alice's room bringing her different things to help her fall asleep: flowers to give off a gentle scent, orange tea to soothe her, an extra quilt to keep her warm and cozy, a lullaby to sing her to sleep, and yellow bells to chime softly.  But Alice loves blue, and those things aren't blue. That is until her mom turns the light of and whispers "Here it comes." Click. And the moon comes in "bathing everything in its pale blue light. Blue flowers. Blue tea. Blue quilts. Blue bells. Blue moon."
     In a Blue Room is a very poetic and tender bedtime story.  It's one of those books where you really notice the care taken in selecting the text that goes in each page to pace the story.  The illustrations are enchanting and indispensable to set the mood of the story.  I especially love the shift from the color into the blue of the night towards the final pages.  Both my kids where born under a blue moon, so this is one to keep in my bookshelf.

Russell the Sheep

Russell the Sheep by Rob Scotton
Illustrated by Rob Scotton
2005

     It's the end of a long busy day and all the sheep are getting ready to go to bed.  Soon, everybody is asleep except for Russell.  "No matter how hard he tried, Russell could not fall asleep."  He tried covering his eyes with his hat to make it darker, but it was too dark and it made him afraid.  He thought he might be too hot so he took off his wool, but then he got too cold.  He tried going for a walk to find a new spot but everywhere he went was either too cramped or too creepy. What if he tried counting things? His legs? No. The stars? Nope. Sheep? Finally!  Russell fell asleep counting sheep...too bad it was already dawn and all the other sheep were waking up.
     Russell the Sheep is a very cute bedtime story.  The best part for me are the illustrations.  Every time I read this book I'm captivated by the beautiful illustrations.  The wool seems so soft you just want to touch it, and the blues of the night are dreamlike.  And they are also funny! There's a little frog companion that shows up unexpectedly in some of the pages and it just cracks my boy up.  Russell rocks!

Go to Bed, Monster!

Go to Bed, Monster! by Natasha Wing

Illustrated by Sylvie Kantorovitz

2007

     One night, Lucy "could not, would not, did not want to go to bed." She wanted to draw instead.  She grabbed her crayons and began drawing geometrical figures, and suddenly the shapes started moving on the paper and right before her eyes they turned into a monster.  The monster roared, but Lucy was not scared, she was just happy to have someone to play with!  Monster and Lucy played and played; they built castles, flew planes, ran and jumped all over her room...until Lucy was exhausted.  "Let's play sleeping lions." But Monster does not want to go to sleep now! He has a laundry list of reason why he can't go to sleep yet -and if you're a parent, you've heard them all- he's hungry, thirsty, cold,  needs to use the potty, scared, not sleepy, the room is too dark...Lucy does everything she can to appease him, and at the end, only when she reads him a bedtime story, does Monster fall asleep next to Lucy.

     Go to Bed, Monster! is a great bedtime story.  Young kids will see themselves in Lucy and Monster.  My son asked for a reread right away...and unfortunately for me, he already used a couple of Monster's excuses for staying out of bed tonight!  The oil pastels and oil paint illustrations by Kantorovitz are perfect: funny and sweet. The pastels give it a child-like quality that helps children connect with the story because they feel like one of "them" drew the illustrations.    

Little Chicken's Big Day

Little Chicken's Big Day by Jerry Davis and Katie David
Illustrated by Katie Davis
2011
Ages 1-4

     Little Chicken lays comfortably in his egg shaped bed.  "Rise 'n' Shine!" says Big Chicken, his mama.  This is the first in a list of commands mama proceeds to give Little Chicken. "I hear you cluckin' Big Chicken," says Little Chicken.  The orders keep coming and we see Little Chicken giving Big Chicken an annoyed looked from his egg shaped car seat.  And mama is in a rush! So much so that she hasn't even had time to tie Little Chicken's red high-tops (coolest shoes ever owned by a chicken!). As she runs, Little Chicken falls behind and get distracted by a butterfly.  Suddenly he finds himself alone, but thankfully he can hear mama singing out for him. "I hear you cluckin', Big Chicken!" says our relieved Little Chicken.
     I loved this book, but more importantly, my four year old LOVED it too. He said "Mami, that's so cute! It was scary because he got lost, but look how happy he got when his mama found him!"  Cute is a good word to describe the book.  The illustrations are adorable!  I really appreciated the change in perspectives to show how big adults look from the point of view of children.  I also liked the image of Little Chicken's red high-tops and Big Chicken's red heels -especially when he finds mama again and we see Little Chicken wrapping his wings around mama's legs.  Finally, the image of Big Chicken and Little Chicken having story time at the end of their hectic day, makes it a great bed time read-aloud.

While You Are Sleeping

While You Are Sleeping by Alexis Deacon
Illustrated by Alexis Deacon
2006

     While You Are Sleeping your stuff animals get to work.  "Do you ever stop to think what we go through night after night, to look after you?"  They check under the bed for monsters, cover you when you are cold, take the covers off when you're too hot, sooth you when you're sick, scare bad dreams away, and even squish the bedbugs flat so they don't bite you.  "We keep you safe no matter what. That's our job, you see." And why do they do it? Because during the day they receive the best pay, they get to be held and loved by you.
     I simply adore this book.  It's so sweet and even funny.  The illustrations by Deacon are magical and dreamlike.  Deacon is to me one of the most incredible illustrators you'll find.  His illustrations are just enchanting...and his text doesn't fall far behind!  You have to see this book! (And his other ones too...Slow Loris, Jitterbug Jam -illustrated by Deacon-...I'll definitely blog about more of his work).

Jitterbug Jam: A Monster Tale

Jitterbug Jam by Barbara Jean Hicks
Illustrated by Alexis Deacon
2005

     I love books that tell a familiar story from a surprising point of view.  Jitterbug Jam is one of those books.  The familiar story of the kid fighting his fears of a monster hiding in the closet or under his bed, is given a fresh twist when we hear the tale told by a little monster named Bobo.  Bobo is really frightened by a boy with  pink skin, orange fur on his head, and blue eyes.  The boy has been waking Bobo up in the middle of the day (that's when monsters sleep) and is hiding under Bobo's bed.  After Bobo shares his fears with his grandpa Boo-dad, he knows the way to confront the boy.  He will "flash him a great big toothy grin."
     My son immediately connected with Bobo and his fears.  The language and rhythm of the story is musical and childlike at the same time.  And flows beautifully; you can really hear the characters. The illustrations by Deacon are simply fantastic and timeless.  I loved this book!

First Day. I Need My Monster

     I've decided to read at least a picture book a day for the next year.  I read every night to my 4 year old son and I have found myself in the middle of a new love affair with picture books.  I think about them long after the lights are turned off.  It has made me think that my dream of writing for children needs a kick in the butt.  That kick comes in the form of this blog.
     I will not only read but write about each book as a way of immersing myself in the world of children's literature.  There will be one picture book added each day, and in those days when I also finish a YA Book, I'll include that one too.
     So here it goes! Best place to start will be with my son's current favorite book:

I Need My Monster by Amanda Noll.

Illustrated by Howard McWilliam.

Year: 2009

     This beautifully written and illustrated book puts on a hilarious twist to the idea of monsters hiding under the bed. Ethan is a boy who discovers that his monster, Gabe, has gone on vacation.  He spends the night dealing with substitute monsters.

     I love the sense of humor. The dialogue flows with ease and you can really "hear" the different voices and tones of its characters.

     It is a fantastic read aloud!  I have so much fun creating all the voices for the different monsters that I'm finding myself grabbing the book even before Santiago asks.