Sleep, sheep!

After his mom suggests counting sheep, perpetually bedtime-averse Duncan takes her advice, and for each number he utters, a sheep jumps over his bed...until one sheep refuses to jump before it gets a drink of water, goes to the bathroom, etc. (Remind you of someone?) The comedy in this welcome spin on the bedtime-avoidance book is sensibly undercut with a soporifically soft palette. (c) Copyright 2019. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

As every caregiver knows, getting a young child to go to bed and stay in bed is no small feat. Sometimes you have to call in the expertssheep.Duncan loves bedtime. He loves his bubble-gum-flavored toothpaste and bedtime stories. What he hates is going to sleep. After running through every excuse from "I'm thirsty" through "I'm too hot" all the way to "I need a nightlight," Duncan has this sleep-dodging thing down to an art. Eventually though, he just has to go to sleep, so he brings in the sheep, literally. He starts counting, and his room fills with numbered sheep, each eager to jump its way to dreamland. That is, until No. 68 comes along. No. 68 needs some water, and then the potty, and then maybe a running startbut maybe not, but maybe some socks could help. On and on he goes as Duncan gets a taste of his own medicine trying to coax No. 68 to just jump already! Readers will enjoy the playful back and forth between Duncan and his sheep. The soft-colored cartoon illustrations add an extra level of comedy and fun to the story, giving all the sheep their time to shinePerreault manages to give the nearly identical sheep individual personalities. Duncan and his mom have brown skin and straight, black hair.Kids and caregivers alike will get a kick out of this smart silliness. (Picture book. 5-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.