Bookstart Recommended Books
with a Bedtime Theme 2010
Snuggle down with your child and enjoy these top titles that are brilliant to enjoy at bedtime.
Make bedtime reading even more enjoyable.
This determined baby refuses to go to bed.
Resolved to stay up all night, he takes off in his car to search for like-minded
friends. But the tiger is too tired, the soldiers too sleepy and even the moon
dozes off.
This magically illustrated award-winning tale is a delight
The Baby Who
Cowboy Baby will not go to bed without his toys, so off he goes into the desert
to find Texas Ted, Denver Dog and Hank the Horse.
When he has found them, he hides behind a cactus, but Sheriff Pa entices him
out with a very special surprise.
A wonderfully original and award-winning picture book.
Cowboy Baby
Many grown-ups will sympathise with the father figure in this story, who is in a
very familiar parental predicament.
Poor George is desperately trying to get young Ba into bed, but Ba is extremely
reluctant to comply.
This is a warm and expressive story, which celebrates the affectionate (if not
always easy) relationship between a father and his son. The illustrations are so
effective that they could almost stand alone.
This is a warm and comforting picture book about familiar evening routines.
With delicate artwork and rhythmic, rhyming text, it describes all the activities
which parent and child can look forward to when Mummy gets home - the
games, the cuddles, the bathtime play and the story.
A reassuring bedtime read.
Get Into Bed!
Lift-the-flap books are hugely popular with the very young, who love the secrets,
the surprises – and the participation. This is a bedtime story that children will
relate to, for the Little Monsters simply do not want to go to bed!
The short, rhyming text has real child appeal and contains tempting words for
the listener to join in with as they lift the flaps and discover the hidden monsters
beneath.
The book is great fun and also teaches the young how to distinguish colours
William Walter and Baboon Bear are going to stay the night with Oma Annie.
William Walter is fine but Baboon Bear is uneasy: he dawdles for the bus,
mopes in the doorway instead of playing in the garden, doesn't enjoy his dinner
and can't sleep for the long-haired shadows on the wall.
Baboon does eventually find comfort, but the real joy of this book lies in
Suzanne Diederen's exquisitely-realised and instantly appealing illustrations,
which bring William Walter, and most of all Baboon Bear, fully to life.
This is a charming bedtime story, which focuses on the fears of a child spending
his first night away from home.
Ordinary family life is transformed into a series of small adventures in this
wonderful picture book. Tilly is a curious toddler who loves treasure hunting; her
parents obligingly hide small 'treasures' - a banana, her rabbit, even themselves
- so that she can enjoy searching for them.
With deft use of rhythm and repetition, the story reaches its charming bedtime
conclusion, in which the tables are turned and it's Tilly who hides.
The gentle, atmospheric illustrations convey the seasons and domestic routines
with energy, humour and loving warmth
Simple rhyming text and bright, colourful, endearing images of a little girl with
her pets and toys make this familiar domestic tale of a missing ted into an
appealing bedtime tale.
The lift-the-flap format is ideally suited to the storyline and gives little fingers
something fun to do, while the imaginative illustrations mean that adults will not
tire of the endless readings which young children are sure to demand.
This title has been shortlisted for the 2005 Booktrust Early Years Awards (Baby
Book Category).
Wouldn't Go To
Bed
Helen Cooper
Sue Heap
Virginia Miller
When Mummy
Comes Home
Tonight
Eileen Spinelli
Bedtime Little
Monsters
Emma Harris
Sleep Tight,
Baboon Bear
Bette Wistera
Treasure Hunt
Allan Ahlberg
No Bed without
Ted
Nicola Smee
When Daddy gets home late on a Friday night after a hard week at work,
everyone in the house is asleep - except for the baby.
Dad and baby take a walk through the darkened house, visiting the rest of the
sleeping family before settling down for a lullaby and nap downstairs.
This is a familiar story, beautifully and simply told, with a lullaby (Rock-a-Bye
Baby) at the end. The illustrations are positively stunning and give a really
intimate feel.
Dads and their babies will love this!
Mamma Duck announces that it's time for her children to sleep but Daisy and
Pip aren't tired and scamper off after Twitch the Mouse, following him in and out
of flowers and over puddles into the night. When a cloud covers the moon, the
night-time world is suddenly very big and dark, and Daisy and Pip feel very
alone.
The ‘flap, flap’ of a passing owl adds just the right frisson of danger in this
ultimately truly reassuring nocturnal adventure, which also stresses the
‘sleeping’ bit of night-time!
Jane Simmons exploits page space and uses luminescent, jewel-like colours to
create this atmospheric portrayal of Daisy and Pips's journey away from
Mamma Duck's reassuring whiteness into the scary, darkness of the night - then
back again.
Daddy's Lullaby
Review It is bed time for six young rabbits and as long as their mother follows a
loving recipe, one bath, six pairs of pyjamas, six cups of milk and a sprinkling of
soft kisses later, she may just manage to get them all to sleep.
A bedtime scenario that will be familiar to most families is played out through the
warm and touching illustrations in the pages of this book.
Penny Ives' cosy images depict a slightly chaotic but loving household, with
plenty of touching domestic details you will continue to discover with each
reading. A perfect bedtime story to return to again and again.
As the sun sets and the sky turns red, all the baby animals are snuggling down
for the night. Zebras, giraffes, porcupines and hippos are all tired out from the
exertions of the day and begin to quieten down and get settled ready for sleep.
Throughout this rhyming book the sun sinks lower and lower in the sky and the
warm glow of the evening deepens around the animals until finally night falls
and they are all asleep.
The text and beautiful illustrations complement each other perfectly in this book
whose gentle rhythm will hopefully have little ones wanting to join the animals
and snuggle down to sleep at the end of it.
Little Bear journeys through an astonishing collection of magical settings, and
meets many exotic animals as he drifts off to sleep.
The text is a series of rhyming statements and questions which draw the child's
attention into the pictures, and encourage them to search for the creatures and
objects mentioned, and also to discover the wealth of other images within each
beautiful illustration.
Sumptuous detail of a fantastic medieval world crammed with amazing people,
animals, buildings and objects fills every spread and contains endless additional
information, providing great opportunities for bedtime sharing between carer and
child.
This exceptional book can be accessed at many different levels, its simple,
repetitive words encouraging careful observation and its magical illustrations
stimulating limitless imaginative response.
Little Tiger doesn't want to go to bed but discovers that staying up all night in the
cold, dark jungle is not as much fun as it seems. His friends are all getting ready
for bed, and he feels increasingly alone and unhappy before Bush Baby takes
him home to his mum.
This is a book which surreptitiously imparts information not only about animal
habits, but also about why small animals (and humans) need to go to bed,
however much they'd rather stay up!
The charmingly illustrated book is accompanied by a CD which features both a
reading by Helen Lederer and Craig Kelly, with music and sound effects, and a
version which incorporates page turning signals for emergent readers.
Review A delightful book to help wean young children from their beloved
comfort blankets! In the first pages, Stewart's text tells readers that Bean the
rabbit is big enough to help Mummy and swing higher than all her friends, but
insists that Cloth is too precious to leave behind.
Fearing it will be taken from her, she hides it very carefully, only to find that at
bedtime she needs it to cuddle but she's forgotten where she has hidden it.
Her parents and siblings reassure her, but after several happy, busy days
Rabbit Pie
Tony Bradman
Daisy and the
Moon
Jane Simmons
Penny Ives
Snuggle Up,
Sleepy Ones
Claire Freedman
Can You See A
Little Bear?
James Mayhew
I Don't Want to
Go to Bed!
Julie Sykes
I Love my Cloth
Amber Stewart &
Layn Marlow
without it, Bean realises that she really is too big for Cloth.
Marlow's illustrations complement the gentle message, and text and pictures
offer great reassurance to small readers.
Like many very young children, Bing Bunny finds it hard to calm down enough to
get to bed after a busy and lively day.
By following a classic routine of bathing, teeth brushing and story reading, Bing
is eventually ready to settle to sleep but not without Flop, his favourite cuddly
toy.
This small format hardback book is attractively presented and illustrated in
classic Dewan style. Each step of the bedtime routine is depicted in bold and
bright colours giving real character to the cheeky little bunny.
Bing's Bed Time will be reassuringly familiar to many toddlers and may be
useful when trying to establish a calming bedtime routine for those who like
Bing, find it hard to settle.
In Baby Bear's bad dream he finds himself in the Jack and the Beanstalk story,
tumbling after the giant into a hole in the ground.
Waking frightened in the murky darkness, he seek out Mama who reassures him
that fairy tales 'can't hurt you'.
This is an imaginative twist on the fairy tale theme, enhanced by beautifully
evocative illustrations. A lovely book to cuddle up with.
No way is the Little Princess turning her light out at bedtime - "I'm not so much
afraid of the DARK...I'm more afraid of ghosts".
After soothing reassurances from the King down to the Maid, the light finally
goes off. But what's that noise?
Under the bed jumps the Little Princess – also a shivering ghost! "Boo!" yells the
Little Princess, "Ooooo!" squeaks the ghost, scampering back to it's mother who
asserts "There's no such thing as little girls". But the ghost still keeps the light
on!
With deft humour, this delicious combination of witty illustrative detail, a diva-like
heroine and a perfectly paced narrative, confronts an everyday fear. A book to
reassure nervous sleepers everywhere – being afraid of the dark has never
been such fun.
Inside, Lucy and Jamie are painting, while outside, a terrible storm is raging.
Later, tucked up in bed, Jamie can't sleep. He, Lucy and their toys set off to find
somewhere without thunder. But nowhere seems quiet and safe – until Lucy
remembers Fairy castle.
Bravery is needed to get there through the forking lightning; then Jamie and
Lucy help the fairies paint away the stormy darkness with vivid splashes of
colour and wake to a sunlit morning.
Jane Simmons' handling of light and shade vibrantly illuminates the intensity of
the storm and the children's dream/adventure, balancing entire page-spreads
alongside small vignettes to orchestrate the story, with elements of day-time life
sneaking into the children's night world.
A dream-like story to reassure at bedtime.
Billy is a bilby – a distant mouse-like relative of a rabbit (or vice versa).
Every night he looks up at the sky and searches for his favourite star. Fearing
that she might not return one night, he decides to give her a memento – a kiss,
and the other bilbies help him to build a mound high enough to achieve this.
As it progresses, this enchanting picture book shows how we learn to put words
to objects (there is discussion about what a kiss is), how we collaborate to help
others, and how we show our appreciation of things we love and value.
Whateley's gentle illustrations beautifully capture the quiet nature of the text,
which provides an ideal book for bedtime sharing.
Oliver Donnington Rimmington-Sneed has been put to bed, but sleep is not for
him! Wide-eyed, he bounces out of bed, into the endless stimulation and
excitement of his room – a riot of floral wallpaper, with toys and books galore.
First painting and reading, then zooming about in cars, and finally taking off in a
rocket, Oliver continues to play. Only when he spots his house from the distance
of Mars, does Oliver recognize that home is a comforting place to be in.
Pre-schoolers will recognise themselves in Oliver as he undertakes his energyfuelled adventure. Familiar themes of creativity and imagination; independence
and security, are reinforced by witty, colourful and engagingly busy illustrations.
The reader is carried along for the ride by a splendidly rhythmic text.
Bing Bed Time
Ted Dewan
Night-time Tale
Ruth Brown
I Want My Light
on!
Tony Ross
Far Away the
Fairies Fly
Jane Simmons
Small Billy and
the Midnight
Star
Nette Hilton &
Bruce Whatley
Oliver Who
Would Not Sleep
Mara Bergman
Little Knight and Little Dragon love getting ready for bed - until they are left
alone in their rooms when their imaginations start to dream up all sorts of scary
things. Little Knight runs into the forest to find his Dad, who is hunting dragons
and Little Dragon runs into the forest to find his Dad, who is hunting knights.
Predictably, the youngsters find the wrong dads but discover that neither is as
frightening as they thought and even persuade the dads to give up fighting and
become friends.
Going to bed (especially in the dark) can be a little bit scary when you're small
but this sturdy picture book with peep-through pages, fold-out spreads, flaps to
lift and touch and feel elements provides an excellent distraction. A classic
message is combined with a fun tale and varied and appealing illustrations.
Willa can't sleep. She is afraid she might have bad dreams. Her brother,
Willoughby, suggests she should think of something happy. He tells her about
all the things that are just longing for the happy moment when Willa wakes up in
the morning. There are her chicken slippers and her jumpsuit waiting to be worn
and her toys dreaming of the games they will play. The only sad thing is the
morning. It's waiting for Willa to go to sleep, as it likes waking her up. At this,
Willa goes to bed, snuggles up and goes to sleep. This is a board book version
of Joyce Dunbar's gentle and reassuring story, complemented by enchanting
illustrations by Debi Gliori.
Knight Time
It's bedtime for baby bat, but he doesn't want to go to bed! He has to be
encouraged to brush his teeth and wash behind his wings. He can’t settle unless
his snail, caterpillar and spider are all tucked in too.
Goodnight Baby
Baby Bat wants to see the moon go to sleep, in a bed of clouds. When finally,
he can see the whole world is covered, flake by flake, by a quilt of snow, at last
Baby Bat is content to go to sleep.
Debi Gliori
Jane Clarke
Tell me
something
happy before I
go to sleep
Joyce Dunbar
Bat
This is a simple bedtime story. It has large, colourful pictures, paper flaps and a
semi-transparent snow scene to delight the infant classroom, although it may be
more suited to a reading between parent and child.
Babies hide behind their bedtime teddy or dolly and their faces are revealed as
each flap is pulled down in this rhyming board book. Toddlers can join in with
the simple rhymes and the refrain "Night, night, baby!" Finally, they see their
own faces in a star-shaped mirror and make a bedtime wish. A delightful,
rhyming flap book with large colourful illustrations.
Night, Night,
There's trouble brewing at the palace. The king and Queen cannot get their son
to sleep. They've tried everything - hot milk, a silk quilt and even cookies. In
desperation, the king asks his subjects for help.
The Prince's
Physicians, magicians, jugglers and jesters all try their best, but the prince
dances all night, rejects his medicine and bounces so hard on the peasant's
pheasant-feather-filled quilt that it bursts!
Joanne
Baby
Marie Birkinshaw
Bedtime
Oppenheim
Finally, an old woman appears with a book in her basket. Closing his eyes to
listen, the troublesome tot falls asleep.
Weary parents and lively children will enjoy this rhyming story. The exploits of
the impish prince are brought to life by comic illustrations which leap off the
page.
Charlie's little sister, Lola, clearly loves delaying bedtime and he has to use all
his powers of logic and diplomacy to persuade her to do what she does not want
to. The illustrations and comments from the little girl convincingly reflect the way
in which a child mixes real and imaginary worlds. The layout of the text is very
varied, combining images of relevant objects with the storyline in Lauren Child's
engagingly witty and immediately recognisable style. A number of pages deal
with topics such as time and actions, which could prompt discussion or follow-up
activities. Certainly, this humorous look at bedtime will strike a chord with many
children and adults.
I Am Not Sleepy
and I Will Not Go
To Bed
Lauren Child
A little girl finds a lost puppy, but in spite of all her efforts he refuses to open his
eyes. Finally, he wakes up and proves to be a joyously lively character – every
child’s idea of the perfect play companion. With its clear, crisp layout and
colourful illustrations, this is an ideal book for reading aloud and sharing. The
simple language and happy subject matter make it ideal for repeated bedtime
readings. It is also unusual in a book for this age group to find the story written
in the first person, which gives an immediacy to the text that young children will
find appealing.
Sleepy
There's trouble brewing at the palace. The king and Queen cannot get their son
to sleep. They've tried everything - hot milk, a silk quilt and even cookies. In
desperation, the king asks his subjects for help.
The Prince's
Physicians, magicians, jugglers and jesters all try their best, but the prince
dances all night, rejects his medicine and bounces so hard on the peasant's
pheasant-feather-filled quilt that it bursts!
Joanne
Pendoodle
Malachy Doyle
Bedtime
Oppenheim
Finally, an old woman appears with a book in her basket. Closing his eyes to
listen, the troublesome tot falls asleep.
Weary parents and lively children will enjoy this rhyming story. The exploits of
the impish prince are brought to life by comic illustrations which leap off the
page.
Young children see their animal toys as living, breathing creatures. Alexis
Deacon's book shows that, although they may not see them move or hear them
speak, after their owner has gone to sleep the toys have a life and an important
role of their own - making sure that everything is safe and comfortable. Deacon
employs his customary soft focus pastel drawings to animate the toys, which
lends an air of enchantment to the scenes. He never represents the toys as if
they were real animals, instead emphasising the stitching and the stuffing and
blank eyes – indeed this feature produces an unnerving touch. Sensitive and
imaginative readers will either find this book greatly reassuring or disturbing.
While You Are
Big sister is reading to her sleepy siblings. She reads about the animals, how
frog takes a snooze in the ooze and how pup takes a sleep in a quivering heap
and asks, “where is your favourite place to sleep?” A comfy lap? A cuddly arm?
Finally, she tucks them up in their beds with stories and teddies before retiring
to her own – but of course they all end up together in her bed. This is a
delightful picture book with sleepy sounds, rhymes, questions, amusing pictures
and a heartwarming end. Ideal for reading to children at bedtime or to 3-6 year
olds in the classroom.
Sleepy Places
Little Bear just can't get to sleep because he is afraid of the dark. Big Bear is
patient and brings bigger and bigger lanterns to keep away the darkness. Still
Little Bear is afraid, so Big Bear takes him outside to see the moon and the
stars. Finally, cuddled up in Big Bear's arms, Little Bear goes to sleep, allowing
Big Bear to finish reading his book. This is a timeless classic, pictures and text
beautifully complementing each other. Included in this edition is a CD with the
story read by Martin Jarvis. This is a well-paced reading with a few effects to
evoke a warm and friendly cave. Ideal for parents and children together or for
the classroom listening corner.
Can't you sleep,
This exuberant version of the familiar old rhyme is full of humour and will soon
have everybody singing! Vibrant, colourful pictures also enhance the fun.
Five in the bed
Sleeping
Alexis Deacon
Judy Hindley
Little Bear?
Martin Waddell
Penny Dann