Switching on the Moon: A Very First Book of Bedtime Poems - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0763642495 ISBN 13: 9780763642495

Publisher: Candlewick, 2010

Synopsis

This wide-ranging collection of bedtime poems is an inspired baby gift that will find a treasured place on children’s nightstands everywhere.

From the hoot of an owl to the horns of the city, from children giggling in the bath to the hushed notes of a lullaby, here is an exquisite anthology that captures the universal poetry of bedtime. Expertly gathered by Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek Peters, these sixty poems range from old favorite poets such as Alfred, Lord Tennyson, Sylvia Plath, and Eleanor Farjeon to beloved contemporary poets like Marilyn Singer, Lee Bennett Hopkins, and Children’s Poet Laureate Mary Ann Hoberman. Beautifully illustrated by G. Brian Karas with richness and whimsy, Switching on the Moon is the perfect book to share with a child to usher in a night of sweet dreams.
Back matter includes an index of first lines and an index of poets.

About this title

About the Author

Jane Yolen is the author of more than 250 books for children and young adults, including Soft House, Owl Moon, and How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? She also collected poems for This Little Piggy: Lap Songs, Finger Plays, Clapping Games, and Pantomime Rhymes, an anthology of rhymes and games for toddlers. Jane Yolen divides her time between Massachusetts and Scotland. 

Andrew Fusek Peters is a poet and anthologist whose work has appeared in collections for children and teens. He has also written many books. Andrew Fusek Peters lives in Shropshire, England.

G. Brian Karas has illustrated close to ninety children’s books, including Megan McDonald’s Ant and Honey Bee: A Pair of Friends. He has also written and illustrated several titles, including Home on the Bayou, a Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor winner. He lives in Rhinebeck, New York.

Reviews

PreS-Gr 3–Sixty well-chosen poems conjure up the perfect atmosphere for dreaming. Sometimes playful and sometimes thought-provoking, the poetry is divided into three categories to carry readers through the bedtime hours: “Going to Sleep,” “Sweet Dreams,” and “In the Night.” Karas's cartoon illustrations, done in gouache, acrylic, and pencil, beautifully complement each poem while also creating an aura of nighttime magic that unifies the volume. The poets included range from Langston Hughes, Sylvia Plath, and Eleanor Farjeon to Karla Kuskin, Douglas Florian, and Tony Mitton. There are many moments to enjoy and to treasure within these pages, and this anthology would have a valuable place in most poetry collections.Julie Roach, Cambridge Public Library, MA
© Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Just right for reading aloud with preschoolers, the 60 poems in this lively anthology play with magical images of the night sky as well as with rituals of bath and bed. Arthur Guiterman’s “Starlighter” includes luminous images of nature and mystery: “When the bat’s on the wing and the bird’s in the tree / Comes the old Starlighter, whom none may see.” Then there is Judith Nicholls’ “Bathtime!” (“I’ve rubbed, I’ve scrubbed”). Karas’ generously sized illustrations in gouache, acrylic, and pencil, many in subdued shades of brown and blue, show a child admiring the moon from many places: a city street, a window, and the side of a pond. Then he marches up the stairs (naming each step as he goes), splashes in the bathtub, and brushes his teeth with the whole family together (“Scrub them, rub them”). Along with the gentle, familiar scenes, many kids will relate to the rebellious voice in Jo Ellen Bogart’s poem: “I am dirty today. I’ll get dirty again / So why bother to wash in between?” A fun companion to Mother Goose. Preschool-Grade 1. --Hazel Rochman

Edition details

• Publisher: Candlewick
• Publication date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0763642495
• ISBN 13: 9780763642495
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Karas G. Brian
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 96