The Prince’s Bedtime
by Joanne Oppenhiem; illustrated by Miriam Latimer
There are those of us who don’t believe in Ferberizing to get a kid off to sleep. When we tried that on our infant son, he howled on and off for four hours, then puked on himself. After that, we didn’t listen to the “let ‘em cry it out” crowd.
But this troublesome tyro’s another story. The King and Queen try everything; a magic potion, dancers, magicians, you name it. Finally, a crafty old lady reads him a story and tricks him into closing his eyes. But this is after several frustrating nights where pretty much the whole kingdom is up entertaining the tot. Oh hello, you think maybe he’s getting a little too much stimulation? Have you tried curbing the sugar and chocolate in his diet?
Yeah, we tried those things too. And you know what eventually worked for us? Reading him bedtime stories.
Latimer uses acrylics and collage to ward off sleep just long enough to enjoy her vivid streaks of loud colors and bouncy figures who gesture wildly while mugging for the prince’s attention. No wonder the poor kid can’t nod off. You won’t want to miss anything either.
Rating: *\*\
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