Thank You for My Bed. Doretta Groenendyk. Charlottetown, PE: Acorn Press, 2011. 24 pp., pbk., $9.95. ISBN 978-1-894838-66-5. Preschool-kindergarten / Ages 1-5. Review by Claire Perrin. **** /4

excerpt:

Snug in my furs,
the igloo warms,
northern lights skip overhead.
Oil lamps are lit
throughout the night.
Thank you for my bed.

A bedtime story about bedtime is the perfect story to read aloud at the end of the day. This book is about children in different parts of the world who are going to sleep in different ways. Some children are shown sleeping in tents, others in igloos or hammocks. In each case, they are shown dozing peacefully with a family member or an animal.

     Doretta Groenendyk, author and illustrator, begins the book with a wish that children around the world "may go to bed free of hunger, fear, loneliness and pain." On this peaceful note, the book begins its rhythmic lullaby. Each page shows a child from a different country going to sleep in a unique way. The text provides clues to where the child lives. The final line from each page is "Thank you for my bed," which gives pattern and predictability to the book. It also delivers the underlying message about being thankful for having a safe place to sleep.

      Groenendyk's beautiful artwork is what really makes this book special. Rich colours are used throughout. The text is placed on a coloured page facing the illustration so there is no white space in the book. This creates a feeling of warmth and extends the artwork across both pages. Without being overwhelming, the pictures are detailed with many things to look at. Each page is unique in its colour scheme and subject.

      The small format of the book makes it ideal for young children to manage. Thank You for My Bed has great appeal for children of all cultures and could easily become a bedtime classic.

Highly Recommended.

Claire Perrin is a teacher-librarian with the Toronto District School Board.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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