Ten Sleepy Sheep - Hardcover

Root, Phyllis

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0763615455 ISBN 13: 9780763615451

Publisher: Candlewick, 2004

Synopsis

Ten, nine, eight. . . . Rhythmic master Phyllis Root lulls little lambs to sleep to the tune of enchanting pastoral images by Susan Gaber.

"Time to sleep,"
call the mama sheep
in the grass knee-deep.

Outside in the farmyard, ten lively lambs would rather play than go to sleep. So off they scamper, off they skip. But the sun is sinking, the stars are twinkling, and sleepy eyes can’t stay open. Ten, nine, eight. . . . One by one, ten drowsy sheep drop off to sleep in a cozy country countdown. With lilting, lyrical language and charmingly scenic views of lambs drifting off wherever they may, author and artist have blended the perfect potion to ease even spirited little ones into sweet dreams. Adorning the storybook cover are ten shiny ribbons — a different color highlighting each little sheep.

About this title

About the Author

Phyllis Root was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and attended Valparaiso University. A trip to a friend’s farm to help with lambing season was the inspiration for TEN SLEEPY SHEEP. "Counting sheep isn’t always easy," she confesses. "Once, while we were farm-sitting, my daughter and I had to chase down two runaway lambs in the growing darkness, then count twenty-seven frisky lambs to make sure they were all safe for the night. Luckily, they were." Phyllis Root has written many books for children, including BIG MOMMA MAKES THE WORLD, OLIVER FINDS HIS WAY, WHAT BABY WANTS, RATTLETRAP CAR, and ALL FOR THE NEWBORN BABY.

Susan Gaber has illustrated numerous books for children, including THE VERY FIRST THANKSGIVING DAY by Rhonda Gowler Greene, and WHEN WINTER COMES by Nancy Van Laan. She is very fortunate to live near a small market that has a fenced yard full of chickens, ducks, a pony, and sheep. While she was working on TEN SLEEPY SHEEP, she would study the two lambs that had come to live there. "Sheep have a reputation for being peaceful and sweet," she says, "but they can also have a stubborn and somewhat rebellious nature, especially when they’re young. Phyllis illustrates this so beautifully in her story. I’m sure children will identify with that, and I, unconsciously, may have too."

Reviews

PreSchool-K-Ten frisky lambs romp around the farm not quite ready for bed. Each time they move from one place to another, one is left behind, sound asleep. All of the spreads are configured in the same manner: an oversized illustration extends to the second page with a short stanza on the right: "10/Ten little sheep/leap the cucumber vine./Long grass bends./Spider mends./Sleep, sheep." Beneath the text is a smaller, softly focused vignette spotlighting the animal that has just fallen asleep. Finally, under this drawing is the phrase, "Now there are…," which will garner listener participation and encourage a quick turn of the page. The lambs are all wearing different colored ribbons around their necks, a visual touch that allows readers to track them individually. At story's end, one lamb remains awake and her mama asks, "Have you tried counting sheep?" As the text reiterates all of the sleeping places, an illustration of the entire farm maps all of the locales. Done in acrylics and pastels, the art carries readers from sunset to moonrise and the light is soft with lush greens and blues darkening gradually as dusk falls. Gaber uses curved lines-bounding sheep, bulging buildings-and a close focus on the action to create an intimate perspective. This sweet and simple book is nicely paced for a bedtime tale but would also be effective for group sharing.-Martha Topol, Traverse Area District Library, Traverse City, MI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

PreS-K. Hard work deserves a rest, so it's not surprising that Root would follow her tale of monumental labor, Big Momma Makes the World (2003), with this peaceful bedtime book. As dusk falls on an idyllic farmyard, 10 lambs kick up their heels in defiance of slumber's call, but one by one each finds a cozy place to lay its head. Root's lilting verses soothe the ear with repeated sounds and rhymes, concluding with one last sheep "in the grass knee-deep, / nestled by her mama, / fast asleep." Gaber's winsome acrylic-and-pastel illustrations are outstanding, rich in color and texture and filled with details to enhance side-by-side sharing. Many animals mentioned in the text ("Spiders mend"; "Crickets strum") aren't immediately obvious in the artwork, adding a gentle seek-and-find challenge, and each lamb wears a unique ribbon around its neck, allowing children to choose one and follow its progress from page to page. No real surprises here, just an unusually fine addition to parents' sleep-inducing bag of tricks. Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Candlewick
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0763615455
• ISBN 13: 9780763615451
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Gaber Susan
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32