The first is Day is Done written by Peter Yarrow and illustrated by Melissa Sweet.
The text is nice and soothing and it has sweet illustrations. My copy came with a cd of four songs by Peter Yarrow, but we haven't actually listened to it yet. The book version has been good enough for us so far. I really like this text because it is written to a son, so it's just perfect to read to my two sons.
The next book I want to talk about is Goodnight Goodnight Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker with illustrations by Tom Lichtenheld.
We first started getting this book from the library. We would keep it for three weeks and return it. Then on our next trip to the library we'd see it there on top of the shelf so we'd check it out again. We bought it to give as a birthday gift for a little friend. But we'd still just keep checking it out from the library for ourselves. So finally this year we actually bought it for ourselves when Amazon had it an unbelievable discount for their Prime Day. Both our boys love this book. It has got the perfect lulling, calming bedtime rhythm, but it also has really cute pictures and it's about trucks! Like a lot of little boys, our youngest son is obsessed with cars and trucks.
Another good bedtime book is How to Make a Night by Linda Ashman and Tricia Tusa as illustrator.
Sadly this book seems to be out of print, but maybe you can find a copy at your local library. If you do come across a copy I highly recommend it. I thought it was such a different take on getting ready for bed. It talks about taking the sky down and dipping it in dye so that it is black at night time. I also really loved the illustrations on this one. It is partly illustrated, part collage. It might be tough to see in this small image, but the girl's skirt is fabric while the rest is drawn/painted. I love that!
It's Time to Sleep, My Love by Nancy Tillman and Eric Metaxas.
I might have this one memorized. Sweet, soothing rhymes. More collage style art. This one was a favorite of mine when I had my first little baby. I have sweet memories of reading this while rocking him gently. Our copy is all taped up because we've read it so many times when little hands were helping turn pages.
The Cat at Night by Dahlov Ipcar.
This book was originally published in 1969. And in the best way possible it looks like it. It's got a very vintage feel to the illustrations which I absolutely love. It's not exactly a bedtime book as far as being a very lulling rhyming story about soothing someone to sleep, but as the title says it's about what a car does at night. I like that it is so interactive for children. You are shown a page where you see the silhouettes of certain things and the children have to guess what they are. Then the next page shows the exact same outlines but filled in with fun colors that the cat supposedly sees. It's fun and I highly recommend it. I will be looking to check out more by this author.
Sleep Like a Tiger is written by Mary Logue with pictures by Pamela Zagarenski
This is a Caldecott Honor book. It's about a young girl who doesn't want to go to sleep. Her parents are able to gently convince her to get in bed. It is just such a sweet story about curling up in bed and falling asleep. The illustrations are astounding. It's the kind of book I could stare at the pictures for minutes myself. Lots of cute details to check out such as the book the little girl is holding before she gets in bed. It's The Little Prince (one of my favorite books of all time!).
The Margaret Wise Brown & Clement Hurd classic Goodnight Moon is last on my list.
We are on our third copy of this book. I think sometimes people forget about the classics and just get whatever is new. I just think anyone who has a baby should have this book. There's a reason they make it into puzzles and put the designs on fabric. Just look at this cute stuffed bunny you can get now too. It is the perfect last book to read before giving goodnight kisses.
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