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Sweet Dreams, Curious George
George is so excited about reading Chicken Little, the new book from the library! But when George goes to sleep, he dreams that the sky is falling, just like in his book! What is a woken-up little monkey to do in the middle of the night? Ask for another story, jump on the bed, drink some warm milk? With the help of the man with the yellow hat and a telescope, he finds a starry solution that will turn his scary dreams into sweet ones.
With art in the style of H.A. Rey and engaging yet soothing text, this book will lull young readers into their own pleasant slumber. Includes glow-in-the-dark stickers to help brighten up the night.
With art in the style of H.A. Rey and engaging yet soothing text, this book will lull young readers into their own pleasant slumber. Includes glow-in-the-dark stickers to help brighten up the night.
- GenresChildrensPicture Books
24 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2005
4 people are currently reading
70 people want to read
About the author
Margret Rey
234 books121 followersMargret Elizabeth Rey (May 16, 1906 – December 21, 1996), born Margarete Elisabeth Waldstein, was (with her husband H. A. Rey), the co-author and illustrator of children's books, best known for their Curious George
Although she was born in Germany, she fled to Brazil early in her life to escape Nazism. While there, she met her future husband Hans (who was a salesman and also from Germany). They married in 1935 and moved to Paris, France that same year.
While in Paris, Hans's animal drawings came to the attention of French publisher, who commissioned him to write a children's book. The result, Rafi and the Nine Monkeys, is little remembered today, but one of its characters, an adorably impish monkey named Curious George, was such a success that the couple considered writing a book just about him. Their work was interrupted with the outbreak of World War II. As Jews, the Reys decided to flee Paris before the Nazis seized the city. Hans built two bicycles, and they fled Paris just a few hours before it fell. Among the meager possessions they brought with them was the illustrated manuscript of Curious George.
The Reys' odyssey brought them to the Spanish border, where they bought train tickets to Lisbon. From there they returned to Brazil, where they had met five years earlier, but this time they continued to New York, New York. The books were published by Houghton Mifflin in 1941, though certain changes had to be introduced because of the technology of the time. Hans and Margret originally planned to use watercolors to illustrate the books, but since they were responsible for the color separation, he changed these to the cartoon-like images that continue to feature in each of the books. (A collector's edition with the original watercolors was recently released.)
Curious George was an instant success, and the Reys were commissioned to write more adventures of the mischievous monkey and his friend, the Man in the Yellow Hat. They wrote seven stories in all, with Hans mainly doing the illustrations and Margret working mostly on the stories, though they both admitted to sharing the work and cooperating fully in every stage of development. At first, however, Margret's name was left off the cover, ostensibly because there was a glut of women already writing children's fiction. In later editions, this was corrected, and Margret now receives full credit for her role in developing the stories.
Margret and her husband moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1963, in a house close to Harvard Square. Following her husband's death in 1977, Margret continued writing, and in 1979, became a Professor of Creative Writing at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. Starting in 1980, she also began to collaborate with Alan Shalleck on a series of short films featuring Curious George and more than two dozen additional books.
In 1989 Margret Rey established the Curious George Foundation to help creative children and prevent cruelty to animals. In 1996, she made major donations to the Boston Public Library and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. She was also a long-time supporter of the Longy School of Music. The Reys spent twenty summers in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, to enable H.A. Rey to better observe the stars for his astronomy writing. They became an integral part of the Waterville community and their legacy is honored by The Margret and H.A. Rey Center and the Curious George Cottage located there.
Dr. Lena Y. de Grummond, a professor in the field of library science (specializing in children's literature) at The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Miss. contacted the Reys in 1966 about the university's new children's literature collection. H.A. and Margret made a donation of a pair of sketches at the time. In 1996, after Margret's death, it was revealed in her will that the entire literary estate of the Reys were to be donated to the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at Southern Miss.
Although she was born in Germany, she fled to Brazil early in her life to escape Nazism. While there, she met her future husband Hans (who was a salesman and also from Germany). They married in 1935 and moved to Paris, France that same year.
While in Paris, Hans's animal drawings came to the attention of French publisher, who commissioned him to write a children's book. The result, Rafi and the Nine Monkeys, is little remembered today, but one of its characters, an adorably impish monkey named Curious George, was such a success that the couple considered writing a book just about him. Their work was interrupted with the outbreak of World War II. As Jews, the Reys decided to flee Paris before the Nazis seized the city. Hans built two bicycles, and they fled Paris just a few hours before it fell. Among the meager possessions they brought with them was the illustrated manuscript of Curious George.
The Reys' odyssey brought them to the Spanish border, where they bought train tickets to Lisbon. From there they returned to Brazil, where they had met five years earlier, but this time they continued to New York, New York. The books were published by Houghton Mifflin in 1941, though certain changes had to be introduced because of the technology of the time. Hans and Margret originally planned to use watercolors to illustrate the books, but since they were responsible for the color separation, he changed these to the cartoon-like images that continue to feature in each of the books. (A collector's edition with the original watercolors was recently released.)
Curious George was an instant success, and the Reys were commissioned to write more adventures of the mischievous monkey and his friend, the Man in the Yellow Hat. They wrote seven stories in all, with Hans mainly doing the illustrations and Margret working mostly on the stories, though they both admitted to sharing the work and cooperating fully in every stage of development. At first, however, Margret's name was left off the cover, ostensibly because there was a glut of women already writing children's fiction. In later editions, this was corrected, and Margret now receives full credit for her role in developing the stories.
Margret and her husband moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1963, in a house close to Harvard Square. Following her husband's death in 1977, Margret continued writing, and in 1979, became a Professor of Creative Writing at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. Starting in 1980, she also began to collaborate with Alan Shalleck on a series of short films featuring Curious George and more than two dozen additional books.
In 1989 Margret Rey established the Curious George Foundation to help creative children and prevent cruelty to animals. In 1996, she made major donations to the Boston Public Library and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. She was also a long-time supporter of the Longy School of Music. The Reys spent twenty summers in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, to enable H.A. Rey to better observe the stars for his astronomy writing. They became an integral part of the Waterville community and their legacy is honored by The Margret and H.A. Rey Center and the Curious George Cottage located there.
Dr. Lena Y. de Grummond, a professor in the field of library science (specializing in children's literature) at The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Miss. contacted the Reys in 1966 about the university's new children's literature collection. H.A. and Margret made a donation of a pair of sketches at the time. In 1996, after Margret's death, it was revealed in her will that the entire literary estate of the Reys were to be donated to the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at Southern Miss.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
February 5, 2019
I’m in an acting mood after finding this book in the abc mouse library. Can we act out the story of Chicken Little? This is a great bedtime story, unless you feel like singing “10 little monkeys jumping on the bed.” Glow in the dark stickers are an added bonus!
February 24, 2015
Synopsis: "George is so excited about reading Chicken Little, the new book from the library! But when George goes to sleep, he dreams that the sky is falling, just like in his book! What is a woken-up little monkey to do in the middle of the night? Ask for another story, jump on the bed, drink some warm milk? With the help of the man with the yellow hat and a telescope, he finds a starry solution that will turn his scary dreams into sweet dreams. With art in the style of H.A. Rey and engaging yet soothing text, this book will lull young readers into their own pleasant slumber. Includes glow-in-the-dark stickers to help brighten up the night."
My Review: This doesn't quite match up with the other Curious George books we have but it is still a very good book. It is easy to apply to real life when little ones are afraid to go to sleep after having a bad dream. Munchkin has been having issues with movies and books giving him bad dreams so this helped to explain to him that they are stories. It is a great bedtime story for the little ones.
My Review: This doesn't quite match up with the other Curious George books we have but it is still a very good book. It is easy to apply to real life when little ones are afraid to go to sleep after having a bad dream. Munchkin has been having issues with movies and books giving him bad dreams so this helped to explain to him that they are stories. It is a great bedtime story for the little ones.
April 11, 2016
George is a good little monkey, but is very curious. The man in the yellow hat takes care of him and brought him a new book to read at bedtime. The little book was about a chick who thought the sky was following. After this story George had trouble sleeping. He was afraid the sky might fall while he slept. The man in the yellow hat showed George the sky and the stars through a telescope. When George saw the night sky, do you think he was able to fall asleep?
Authors Margret & H.A. Rey’s have put together a fun Curious George read for kids who might have trouble sleeping. Colorful illustrations help little ones read this story even if they don’t know the words.
Authors Margret & H.A. Rey’s have put together a fun Curious George read for kids who might have trouble sleeping. Colorful illustrations help little ones read this story even if they don’t know the words.
August 26, 2020
The Curious George books are so endearing. This book is about all the things that can go wrong during the bedtime routine. Scary stories, spilled milk, bad dreams, and restlessness lead to a late bedtime and a lesson in astrology and science. The kids love the Curious George stories and they always deliver a great story with great illustrations.
August 14, 2019
Even though I giggle at calling the Man with the Yellow Hat George's "Friend," I genuinely enjoy the monkey books.
Oz really liked this book -- sometimes books will scare him and then he will have a hard time going to sleep. This was a reassuring book for him.
Oz really liked this book -- sometimes books will scare him and then he will have a hard time going to sleep. This was a reassuring book for him.
December 8, 2013
A new addition to curious george series.
May 3, 2018
Always love george and my big girl likes it so much.. but this one is not one of the most liked for me
April 13, 2019
We love Curious George books!
August 3, 2020
It was a funny book.
July 30, 2023
My favorite thing about this book is the gentle way the man with the yellow hat does various things to help George go to sleep.
January 6, 2016
the allusion to a classic childrens book that i've already read to my DD was a good touch. *** spoiler alert**** if you havent read chicken little...maybe that story should be read first
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews