Elem. – This Book Will Get You to Sleep

John, Jory. This Book Will Get You to Sleep. Farrar Straus Giroux, 2022. 978-0-374-31130-8. Unpaged. $18.99. Grades PreK-2.

A charismatic, orange kangaroo narrates this story with one goal in mind: to get the reader to sleep. He tries many different tactics, most of which are outrageous and hilarious. For instance, he suggests that rumbling monster trucks, blaring car alarms, or screaming electric guitars might make the reader tired. He tries chants, magic tricks, and other strategies until he finally resorts to suggesting that the reader count sheep. There is a problem; however, these sheep are being chased by dragons! When all of the excitement fails to put the reader to sleep, the narrator suggests reading something less fun instead. Bold illustrations and colorful text add to the rowdiness of the story. A humorous tale with a refreshing take on bedtime drama, this book is sure to elicit plenty of laughs from young children. 

THOUGHTS: I love how interactive this book is, inviting readers to answer questions posed by the kangaroo (“You tired yet???” “You asleep yet???” “You dreaming yet???”).  The audience is also encouraged to participate in various chants throughout the story. Pair this with other stories about falling asleep, such as Drew Daywalt’s Sleepy, the Goodnight Buddy (2018) or Dev Petty’s I Don’t Want to Go to Sleep (2018). This book quickly will become a bedtime favorite!

Picture Book          Julie Ritter, PSLA Member

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