Bedtime and Beyond
Without a doubt, one of my favorite times of the day when my four were younger was just before bedtime, when we curled up in my favorite rocking chair and read book after book. By the time I needed to rock my youngest to sleep, I had most of our picture books memorized, word for word.
Though we read many other times during the day, there was something extra special about that nighttime reading, holding my precious one and lulling him to sleep with rhythmic words spoken with as much love as I could muster while reading about talking trucks. My heart would overflow, realizing that his last thoughts before drifting off to sleep were of my arms around him, the bond we shared, and something so innocent—like trucks or bunnies or teddy bears—that would continue to play creatively in his mind as he slept.
Whether your special one is a toddler who may not understand the words you read but enjoys the touch, the pictures, and the soothing sound of your voice before bedtime or a youngster whose feet drag the floor while you rock, you’ll enjoy these children’s books of adventures at bedtime and beyond.
In Henry’s Bed by Margaret Perversi (Candlewick, 2008), little Henry is “going to sleep in Henry’s bed tonight. Oh yes!” and each mother reading the book assumes that this might be the first time little Henry is tackling this new adventure. Henry wonders if his mama, papa, cat, goat, ducks, or cow will sleep with him. But, he finally decides the bed is just the right size for only him—and his teddy bear, of course.
If Animals Kissed Good Night by Ann W. Paul (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008) is an adorable reader with cartoon-like animal parents and offspring kissing good night, from pythons to walruses to peacocks. The rhyming, sometimes nonsensical words (“Seal and his calf would blow big bubbled kisses that rise to the surface in spashity splishes.”) rise and fall on the page in roller coaster like stanzas that encourage singsong reading to youngsters.
Bat Loves the Night (Nicola Davies; Candlewick, 2004) and Amazing Bats (Seymour Simon; Chronicle Books, 2005) bring the reader to one of God’s nighttime creatures, the fascinating, and sometimes mysterious, bat. In the first selection, read about a pipistrelle bat that searches for food for her baby during the night, and then read for even more information about bats—food, habitats, sizes, and kinds—in the second selection. Beautiful photographs in Amazing Bats allow you to see bats, quite possibly, as close as you’ll ever want to see them!
Make nighttime memories to treasure and last well beyond bedtime by reading these and other delightful children’s books with your kids.
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