POP LULLABY

A father tries to get his tired baby to fall asleep in this rhyming lullaby by an author and songwriter.

The Caucasian parent begins by acknowledging that it’s late and that he’s attempting to find solutions to end the infant’s tears: Is the baby hungry? Counting sheep won’t work until she’s older. In the uncredited illustrations, which mix realism with painterly textures, the father first tries rocking the baby in a chair before moving her to a swing, putting her back in her crib, playing his guitar, and taking her for a ride in the car. The colors of the child’s onesies indicate that this sleepless experience takes place over several days, and the father’s lyrics reiterate this pattern, proclaiming “life is one long sleep walk,” and “it’s been ten weeks since we last slept.” But while he voices complaints (loud sounds from the crying child; stubbed toes), he also has beautiful words of love for his daughter: “For you I would move heaven and earth.” Meant as much—or more—for the mothers and fathers of young, sleepless children as the kids themselves, Gutman’s (Charlie the Caterpillar, 2017) lullaby lyrics give a personal but recognizable view of parenthood. Parents of babies will likely be nodding in recognition. The soothing words of love, repeated over and over, should stick with young listeners, and a link to the song helps contextualize the rhymes and rhythms of the poetry.

A sweet song of love that humorously portrays the struggles of parenting.