Feet, Go to Sleep

March 1, 2015
When every inch of you is bone tired, why not try falling asleep bit by bit? That's what little Fiona, weary from a tiring day frolicking with family at the beach, does-and it works. She dispatches each body part off to dreamland, reminiscing as she goes how each part, starting with her toes and proceeding upward, was especially suited to enjoy a day bursting with activity and fun. The watercolor, gouache, fabric, and digital illustrations are bright and cheerful, neatly conveying a perky child and her warm, happy memories of a day spent with loving, multiethnic relatives. In her body language, Fiona looks almost as energetic in her varying states of repose as she did on the beach and during the picnic afterward, which may lead some readers to believe that actively, consciously willing the body to sleep might stimulate wakefulness rather than induce drowsiness. Additionally, the front blurb suggests that sending body parts off to sleep, one by one, is "a proven relaxation technique," but no supporting evidence to back this up is provided in an author's note or elsewhere; parents might appreciate corroborative research or anecdotal data. Still, children and their special grown-ups should find this an endearing prelude to bedtime after their own very busy days, especially if enlivened by discussions of how kids' body parts figured into their activities. This technique for drifting off to slumber is surely worth a try. (Picture book. 3-6)

March 1, 2015

K-Gr 2-Veteran author and illustrator Bottner and Smith team up to create a charming seaside bedtime story. Pajama-clad Fiona is standing on her head on her bed when Mama comes to tell her it is "time to say good night." Fiona clearly is not sleepy, but Mama suggests that she must be tired "from her head to her toes." Thus the scene is set for each successive page turn, as Fiona acquiesces and commands first her toes, then her feet, then her knees, legs and tummy, her shoulders, her arms, hands and fingers, then her mouth and finally her ears, to "go to sleep." Inset pictures on every page show Fiona gradually settling into her bed and relaxing each part of her body. The full-page illustrations behind the insets depict Fiona and her family enjoying their day at the beach. "Feet were for stomping in the waves.... Legs were for running after the cousins.... Arms were for catching the beach ball." After Fiona has focused on and relaxed every bit of her body she is able to close her eyes and drift off. Smith's colorful mixed-media illustrations exude all the fun of a summer's day spent at the ocean, topped off with a barbecue picnic dinner on the beach house lawn. The dual-scene spreads include just enough detail to juxtapose the excitement of the day with the scenario of a child learning to soothe herself to sleep. VERDICT A gentle, joyous addition to most collections.-Lynn Van Auken, Oak Bluffs School, Oak Bluffs, MA

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