The Sleepytime Book - Hardcover

Wahl, Jan

3.83

6 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0688102751 ISBN 13: 9780688102753

Publisher: Tambourine, 1992

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Visits the homes of drowsy animals at bedtime

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

From School Library Journal:

PreSchool-Grade 1-- Assorted creatures are shown turning in for the night: a bear in his den (holding a teddy bear), a cat on a swing cushion, a baby in a crib. The pastel on charcoal paper illustrations are unnecessarily and ineffectively cute--frogs in bow ties, for example--especially since the personification isn't consistent or done for any apparent reason. The animals are first described as going to their respective burrows or dens, and drawn sans clothing or eyewear. On the opposing pages, however, the addition of such detail to the illustrations is distracting and annoying. The text is also confusing. It describes several animals accurately, and then suddenly a grandfather fox in bifocals is telling his young ones to wash their ears. The thrushes are described realistically in a pine tree, right next to a caterpillar wearing a nightcap. Personification often works to set a tone for a book and to make aspects of the animal characters more understandable to young readers or listeners. However, this is neither a bedtime story nor a description of where animals live and sleep. Rather, it is an inconsistent jumble of wordy text, confusing images, and animals with blue eyes and wool hats. --Christine A. Moesch, Buffalo and Erie County Public Library, NY
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Publishers Weekly:

In free-verse couplets, veteran author Wahl ( Humphrey's Bear ; A Gift for Miss Milo ) portrays a series of animals as they creep into their nighttime resting places. The lilting rhythms, alliteration and repeated refrain are indeed soothing--"Black Bear climbs / into a soft, leafy den / with the taste of honey / on his fat paws. / He licks the last lick / of sweet, gummy honey. / Sleepytime Bear." Some may feel, however, that these verses represent too much of a good thing: by book's end Wahl has recounted the bedtime habits of 17 creatures, habits that in many cases are similar to one another. The pastel drawings by first-time illustrator Johnson, in nocturnal blues and greens, have an unaffected sweetness. Black Bear cuddles his own small teddy bear; Moose dons a muffler; Centipede rests his head on a tiny pillow. (Though the art, too, pales somewhat from repetition.) Still, this affable offering may well work its charms on drowsy youngsters. Ages 3-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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