Bedtime is Canceled! By Cece Meng, 32 pages.
Young Maggie’s wishful note said “Bedtime is canceled!” Her parents didn’t believe it for a second. They put the note directly into the trash.
But the note didn’t stay there. Before long, a gust of wind got ahold of the note and blew it across town into an open window.
It landed on a news reporter’s desk and was reprinted in the headlines of next morning’s newspaper. “BEDTIME IS CANCELED!” Everyone read it - or heard about it. Everyone believed it (except for Maggie and her brother).
The principal at Maggie’s school read it and immediately sent a notice home to all the parents – who were, understandably, not happy. (In fact, some parents threw temper tantrums - and were given time-outs by the principal!)
That night, there was no bedtime. Pajamas lay unworn and teddy bears sat unhugged. Kids played tag, bounced on their beds and climbed the walls - as did their parents. No one slept.
The next morning, weary parents poured coffee in their briefcases and purses and buttered pets’ tails instead of toast. Tired teachers couldn’t remember the answers to “1+1” and “2+2”. At dinnertime, parents fell asleep at the dinner table with their heads in plates of mashed potatoes or bowls of soup.
Things were quickly getting out of hand.
The new note said, “Bedtime is NOT cancelled!” Maggie wrote it – and this time, her parents believed it. The newspapers printed it and the television stations reported it. And that night, everyone went to bed and slept and slept, except for Maggie and her brother….
Preschoolers may want to delay (or cancel) their own bedtime to hear this hilarious story one more time!
** Recommended for ages 3 to 6 years.
Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket by Tatyana Feeney, 32 pages.
Small Bunny loves his blue “blankie” so much that he always has it with him. It does everything that he does, from going for a swing ride to painting a picture or reading a book. Somehow, his blanket buddy seems to help Small Bunny to swing the highest, paint the best pictures and read the hardest words.
Small Bunny thinks his blankie is perfect – but Mother Bunny thinks differently. One day she insists that both he and his blanket need a good bath.
After Small Bunny’s bath, his mother puts his blue blanket into the washing machine, assuring him that “it will only take a minute.”
For a full 107 minutes, Small Bunny anxiously watches his blanket being laundered. When he finally gets it back, it somehow isn’t the same.
Young listeners (many of whom will have their own special blanket or other comfort toy such as a stuffed animal) will agree with the clever way in which Small Bunny makes his blanket “perfect” again in this appealing story, enhanced with Tatyana Feeney’s whimsical line drawings.
** Recommended for ages 2 to 4 years.
This review appears in The Stratford Gazette on April 25, 2013. Written by Sally Hengeveld, Librarian.
0 comments:
Post a Comment