Sleepy, Oh So Sleepy

July 19, 2010
It's bedtime for all creatures great and small—including humans—in this cozy picture book. Each spread, rendered in Fleming's (Beetle Bop) signature medium of vibrantly dyed paper pulp, depicts a baby critter cuddling with a parent and headed to dreamland. Accompanying each of the intimate portraits is a simple couplet ("Tiny baby ostrich,/ sleepy, oh so sleepy. Tiny baby lion,/ sleepy, oh so sleepy") and, every third scene or so, the query, "Where's my sleepy baby?" After watching koala, elephant, orangutan, and other creatures drift off, the narrator does indeed find "my sleepy baby," a yawning, dark-haired infant, who gets tucked into bed along with a sock monkey. Fleming's palette is exceptionally bright and lively—no fluffy pastel portraits here. Instead, readers get bold scenes of animal parents and children at very close range, with fiery outlines in blue and red. But despite the kinetic quality of Fleming's artwork, by book's end the rhythmic repetition of the titular phrase is likely to have sent readers quietly on to sleep, just like it's supposed to. Ages 2–5.

Starred review from July 15, 2010
Fleming's somnolent latest peeks in on several baby-parent pairs as the little ones get ready to bed down. Seemingly tailored to the smallest listeners, the simple, patterned text and repeated refrain make it easy for them to join in the reading: "Tiny baby panda, / sleepy, oh so sleepy." Ostrich, lion, penguin, giraffe, otter, koala, kangaroo, possum, elephant, anteater and orangutan round out the animal cast, giving children the chance to revisit their favorites while also introducing some lesser-known creatures. Interspersed is the repeated question, "Where's my sleepy baby?" giving children another chance to interact with both the text and their adult reader. The end sees the narrator's own sleepy baby tucked in and sleeping peacefully. The author's signature pulp-painting illustrations fill the spreads with mottled jewel tones and the texture of the handmade paper. The animal babies take center stage--just enough of a parent is shown to help with identification. Audience participation required...likely again and again and again. (Picture book. 2-5)

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

July 1, 2010
PreS—-leming's pulp papermaking technique, with its soft edges, warm colors, and highly textured look, gives this book just the right tone. The repetition of "sleepy, oh so sleepy" pairs well with the repeated question, "Where's my sleepy baby?" as various animals are introduced. From the familiar panda and penguin to the lesser-known anteater and orangutan, the many creatures are depicted in their natural environments. The final spread features a tiny human baby, which, for any child still awake after this soothing read, will be a pleasing sight.—"Barbara Elleman, Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, Amherst, MA"

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from June 1, 2010
Preschool *Starred Review* Although a human baby yawns on the book jacket, this soporific picture book introduces various animals at bedtime on each of the first 12 double-page spreads. The text begins, Tiny baby panda, / sleepy, oh so sleepy. / Tiny baby ostrich, / sleepy, oh so sleepy. / Tiny baby lion, / sleepy, oh so sleepy. / Wheres my sleepy baby? On one double-page spread after another, a baby animal closes its eyes to sleep, protected by a watchful parent. Written on a single page, the text would look like four stanzas followed by a coda. Though woven through with words used repeatedly in the verses, the ending shifts its sense and rhythm as subtly as breathing shifts when someone drifts off to sleep. Briefly the focus narrows to the human children, then broadens to include all the worlds sleeping babies. Formed using Flemings signature medium of pulp painting, which simultaneously creates the image and the paper that bears it, and accented with pastel pencil, the large-scale illustrations are bold in form and rich in color. With mesmerizing words rolling along, this large-format bedtime book does its job so well that its hard to repress a contented yawn when the story winds down to its quiet ending.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)