Review by Booklist Review
This cheerful picture book follows a toddler through a day full of simple pleasures, such as playing at the park, baking cookies with Grandma, and splashing in the tub. The hard part comes when each good time ends, but when it's time to let go, this child knows the formula that makes it easier: Bye-bye swing, Bye-bye Grandma, and so on through the day, until bedtime, when it's Night-night light. Night-night book. Night-night Mommy. The appropriately short text captures the rhythm of the child's day, tacitly acknowledges the difficulty of ending each enjoyable activity, and shows a simple tool for letting go with grace. Bright and sunny, the mixed-media illustrations create an appealing world full of recognizable things. Though adults enter the picture from time to time, the toddler is at the center of each colorful scene.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Young children are rarely prepared to leave a fun activity, even if something better awaits them. This chronicle of a typical day in the life of a busy toddler is perhaps a bit unrealistic in the way the youngster happily complies after only a moment's hesitation. "Bye-bye cookies. Bye-bye flowers. Bye-bye Grandma." And it's off to the next frolic. However, children and adults alike will find the pages of vibrant, sweet, watercolor illustrations captivating. The pictures, along with a spare text, make this an enjoyable read-aloud for the youngest of listeners. And maybe the behavior modeled by the child will be catching.-Debbie Lewis, Alachua County Library District, FL (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Goodnight Moon, and this rendition applies much the same formula, substituting the title phrase with bye-byes and extending it through a busy day. A toddler is taken to the park, where he swings, digs and has fun, but when it's time to go, he says, "I don't want to leave." The unseen adult says, "It's time to say bye-bye," so the child obligingly says bye-bye to the swing, the sandbox and his friend. A visit to Grandma sees a similar scenario, with bye-byes to the cookies, flowers and Grandma. Back home means eating, building and a toy parade, with subsequent bye-byes to dishes, blocks and toys. Bath time and bedtime follow with night-nights to the light, books and Mommy, with time for sweet dreams. Cocca-Leffler's sprightly illustrations are sweet but not saccharine, and their positivity is useful for adults trying to deal with "I don't want to go" whiners. Each objection to leaving by the toddler is expressed in the first-person and printed in red. So effective is the delivery here that parents may find themselves saying bye-bye to things they'd never imagined talking to. (Picture book. 0-2)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
