Goodnight Already!

October 13, 2014
John (All My Friends Are Dead) and Davies (The Storm Whale) bring fresh humor to a familiar scenario, tracing the push and pull between a character desperate to get some shut-eye and one who is far from ready for bed. Here, the sleepy party is Bear, who has just tucked into bed (along with his tiny stuffed pink rabbit) when the doorbell rings. Barging in is his friend and neighbor, Duck, who’s “never been so awake” and is determined to have fun with Bear—any kind of fun (“Make smoothies?” “No.” Start a band?” “No”). Both the repartee and the sight gags display excellent timing, making the most of the classic comic tension between a hulking grouch and a diminutive pest. But this is also a physically lovely book: working in a distilled style reminiscent of classic UPA animation, Davies uses nocturnal blues, geometric patterning, and contrasting scale in a way that makes every page pop. The one thing readers will not say about this book is “Enough already!” Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. Illustrator’s agency, the Bright Agency.

October 1, 2014
Animals with differing internal rhythms find it challenging to be neighbors in this nocturnal tale. Duck is full of energy; sitting in his brightly lit, yellow kitchen, he sips coffee while perusing 101 Ways to Stay Awake. Bear, by contrast, stands sleepily at the base of the staircase in his dimly lit living room, stuffed rabbit dangling from one massive paw. Just after Bear climbs the steps and settles in, Duck raps on the door, wide awake. "Wanna play cards?...Watch a movie?...Start a band?...Make smoothies?" To each suggestion, Bear simply says "No." This pattern plays out three times, each episode ending with one or the other voicing the titular refrain until the beleaguered bear is finally wide awake, and the duck drifts off. The relationship between a lumbering, grumpy character and a frenetic extrovert will be familiar to grown-up fans of cartoons, and Duck's ludicrous behavior and costumes will no doubt elicit giggles from young listeners. Davies brings an animator's sensibility to his uncluttered compositions; variation in page color and typeface as well as skillful manipulation of facial features signal emotional states. The texture of the hairy bear and the occasional patterns on the floor and bedspread add interest to the flat backgrounds. That's all, though, folks. With its one-joke plot and dramatic potential, it's better suited to school and library use than repeat readings in a lap at home. (Picture book. 3-6)

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November 1, 2014

PreS-Gr 1-In this familiar-sounding story, an exhausted animal tries to sleep as his overly friendly neighbor pays him repeated visits. Late one night, Duck is bored and decides Bear will entertain him, but grumpy Bear rejects his suggestions to watch movies and make smoothies, sending the bird home with a "Goodnight already." Duck turns up twice more to interrupt his neighbor's sleep and is dismissed by an increasingly irate Bear, who, in the end, is left wide awake, while Duck falls fast asleep next door. The premise of this story is not very original, and even the ending won't be a surprise. Bear comes across as a grouchy curmudgeon, while Duck is oblivious and annoying, and their dialogue is stilted. The illustrations, however, are charming, with solid color backgrounds highlighting moods, yellow for Duck and blue-gray for Bear, as well as the characters themselves, who stand out against the saturated backdrops. Little details add color to each page, from Bear's pink stuffed animal to Duck's red electric guitar. For libraries that have Bonny Becker's A Visitor for Bear (2012) and A Bedtime for Bear (2010, both Candlewick), this may not be a first purchase, but the fresh, funny art makes it a worthy consideration.-Marian McLeod, Convent of the Sacred Heart, Greenwich, CT

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2014
Preschool-G Poor Bear. All he wants to do is go to sleep. But his neighbor Duck is wide awake and wants company. Will Bear play cards? Read stories? Make smoothies? Be sympathetic to a stubbed beak? Bear and Duck play out a back-and-forth scenario of approach and rebuff, until the tables are turned: Duck falls asleep but Bear is now wide awake. The story is reliant on the visual cues of Davies' comic illustrations, so that the exchange between the characters is funny rather than intolerable. Duck is so small compared to Bear, yet his larger-than-life (and possibly caffeine-induced?) energy overwhelms his much larger neighbor. Bear becomes more and more irritable with each interruption from Duck, yet maintains a strained cuddlinesshe is always holding his teensy bedtime bunny in his massive paw. (Eagle-eyed readers will notice that the bunny is a silent participant in the action, often reflecting Bear's feelings.) While not a typical bedtime battle of wills, parents and kids will recognize the power struggle between Duck and Bear and pick sides accordingly.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)