IT'S TIME FOR BED

An energetic Inuit girl develops a bedtime ritual built on refusals in this picture book featuring Canadian animals.

This is a very simple bedtime story for caregivers who wish to demonstrate the inevitability of getting tired and going to sleep, even when the child in question has as much energy as young Siasi. Beginning with the same refrain with each page turn—“It’s time for bed. The sun has set”—an unseen adult asks Siasi what part of her bedtime routine she has accomplished. Reliably, Siasi yells, “NoooOOOooo!” when she is asked to complete her tasks in preparation for sleep. Her bedroom is depicted as a wilderness in which she mimics imaginary animals. She dances with a polar bear rather than brushing her teeth, runs with caribou instead of putting on her pajamas, and flaps her arms with a flock of geese when she should be putting away her toys. With its simple language and reliable call-and-response structure, the book is well-suited for very young children or kids who are learning to read. Siasi’s spunk, as depicted in the lively illustrations, is the book’s greatest strength. Mack’s digital artwork features pleasing pastels, printlike textures, and shading that suggests Siasi’s imaginary animal world. While little kids will have fun honking, roaring, and howling with Siasi, the book lacks culturally specific details that would make this a more enduring read.

Siasi’s whirlwind curiosity, energy, and imagination will inspire younger kids to mimic and love the animal world (if not to go to bed)