Review by Booklist Review
It's bedtime, but a pair of patient mothers is having trouble getting their child to calm their body and nestle down to sleep. The child, restless, suggests sleeping in a tree like a koala or upside down like a bat or snuggled with piglets in the mud. Eventually, however, they realize that the best bed for them is their big-kid bed. It's a simple tale, dotted with animal facts--whales keep swimming while they sleep, puffins sleep in underground burrows, otters sleep holding hands--but the real thread of the story is the tender, loving dance of coaxing a child to sleep. Cornwall (Jabari Jumps, 2017) puts the child in fire engine--red pajamas that energetically pop against the muted, nighttime hues of pea green, gentle mauve, and denim blue on the mothers, the seafoam bedroom walls, and sky-blue bed. Same-sex couples and mixed-race families will appreciate seeing themselves represented, and the child (and the bountiful terms of endearment used for them) is kept deliberately ungendered. A sweet tale for sweet dreams.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Bedtime delays abound in this book centering a young animal lover. While a child envisions snoozing as different creatures do, a parent patiently attempts to wind things down as another adult tends to an infant. "Maybe I could sleep upside down like... a bat! They hold on with their feet and hang down from branches," says the brown-skinned, rosy-cheeked child, portrayed in red footie pj's among a colony of bats. "My little bat, it's time to calm our bodies down," replies tan-skinned, short-haired Mama. Cycling through koalas, sea otters, piglets, puffins, whales, and emperor penguins, the story integrates notable facts about the featured critters' nocturnal habits, while pencil and watercolor illustrations finished digitally show the child cozying up with friendly wildlife pals who seem similarly disinclined to settle. After a smooth segue by Mama that emphasizes a loving parent-child relationship, the book reaches a snuggly conclusion that sets the stage for sweet animal dreams. Ages 3--7. (May)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A young child's imagination runs wild before bedtime. It's lights out, but energetic Sweet Pea, depicted with light-brown skin and straight hair, isn't quite ready to go to sleep yet. Mama, a stout White woman, repeatedly tries to tuck them in, but they obstruct her attempts by chattering on about all the various ways they could sleep. Climbing up a bedpost, they declare that they want to sleep like koalas do, high up in trees. Hiding under their pillow, they pretend that they are dozing like a puffin in its burrow. Standing on their bed, they wonder if they can sleep upright like emperor penguins snoozing on rocks. After making their way through several more animals and their sleeping habits, Sweet Pea's stalling ends as they conclude that their bed is "the best bed for me." Cornwall's art, rendered in pencil and watercolor with a digital finish, uses a restrained palette of minimal, muted colors that adds a soporific feel to the narrative. The text is dialogue-heavy but flows easily and combines the humor of Sweet Pea's bedtime antics with the tenderness of their relationship with their patient caregivers. The illustrations show that Sweet Pea has two moms, one of whom shares their skin color and hair color. A sweet, playful bedtime story with animal appeal. (Picture book. 5-9) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
