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A NUMBER SLUMBER by Suzanne Bloom

A NUMBER SLUMBER

by Suzanne Bloom ; illustrated by Suzanne Bloom

Pub Date: Oct. 4th, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62979-557-7
Publisher: Boyds Mills

A bedtime-book/concept-book mashup for little ones.

Sleepy anthropomorphic animals clad in pajamas populate Bloom’s latest offering, illustrated in her signature soft pastels. Dark backgrounds suggest nighttime as the text opens by asking readers, “What do you do to get ready for bed?” As the text postulates some typical bedtime activities in the second person, the illustrations depict various creatures performing routines of tooth-brushing, book reading, and so on. After these introductory pages comes the question “What do other sleepyheads do when their busy day is through?” and here’s where the book shifts, adding counting concepts to the standard bedtime narrative. Alliteration and unusual animal choices add textual appeal as first, “ten terribly tired tigers tiptoe to their beds” and then newts, elephants, sun bears, and others count readers down to “one really weary wombat [that] yawns…” before a final page again invokes “you”—who is, of course, fast asleep. But who is this “you?” If they are not too drowsy, attentive readers will notice a clue on the title page that connects to the closing image.

Count on this as a solid bedtime-book choice.

(Picture book. 2-4)