Sleep Tight, Snow White

by Jen Arena, Lorena Alvarez Gomez (Contributor)

A Mother Goose for the new bedtime rhymes for all your favorite princes, princesses, and nursery rhyme characters!
 
Everyone has a hard time nodding off sometimes—from Prince Charming, who snores so loud it’s alarming, to Hansel and Gretel, who have Sleepytime tea in the kettle. With a good night’s sleep, even the Wicked Queen can have a new day, fresh and clean!
 
Say good night to your favorite characters from beloved fairy tales and nursery rhymes in this enchanting bedtime book from author Jen Arena with gorgeous illustrations from Lorena Alvarez.

Genres: Picture Books, Poetry, Childrens, Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Nursery Rhymes, Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2017

About the author

Jen Arena is lucky to have been surrounded by great children’s books her whole life. As a teenager, she worked at a children’s-only indie bookstore in Pennsylvania, and after graduating from college, she made her way to New York City, where she found a job in children's book publishing. Since then, she’s written many books for kids. She recently left New York and now lives in Florida, surrounded by sunshine, palm trees, and really weird birds.

Reviews

[Krys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone, good or bad, needs there sleep, from Princes to Beasts to mermaids under the sea. Here, in rhyming text and beautifully layered illustrations, we revisit several Nursery Rhymes and Fairy Tales in quick, digestible bites. It's a great book for recognizition and visuals, sure to keep a child's attention and maybe, hopefully, help them fall asleep as well! Gorgeous!

[Set · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goodnight to all the fairy tale characters, my favorite is Beauty and the Beast.

[Kristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so special to me because my preschool-aged daughter & I have jointly decided we adore Lorena Alvarez’s illustrations! We pre-ordered this one and got it yesterday and it doesn’t disappoint. I love the quick poetic references to popular traditional literature with a theme of falling asleep, and especially we loved poring over the illustrations. I can’t remember another illustrator being so adept at world building. Her details and style and so unique but still so recognizable across her projects. I can’t say enough about her art!

[Sandra]

Not rating. Love love love the illustrations. I adore Lorena Alvarez's art. So 5 stars there.

BUT writing almost nonexistent-tiny rhymes with tangential relations to the original story and unnecessary emphasis on looks:

"Want a fella
Cinderella
Eight hours' sleep
Will make you bella."

Similar for sleeping beauty. REALLY? Seriously? This is still how we're going to indoctrinate kids? (Also, she was like a slave to her family, bigger issue than not being bella!?)

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet, simple, cute. Short rhyming bedtime couplets stand in for a series of fairytales and nursery rhymes. Some are more awkward or eyebrow raising; others are just plain nice. The illustrations feature a wider range of diversity than has been typical, but I was still feeling like it fell short.

Would be a nice, quick bedtime read for a fairytale princess lover.

[Chelsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous art. So pretty.

[Cristina Bermúdez · Rating 3 out of 5]

¡Hermosas ilustraciones! De verdad que estaba fascinada viendo cada una de sus páginas porque sus dibujos eran sumamente bellos y llenos de detalles que enamoran al lector.

[Jessica Calaway · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ages 3-5, beautiful illustrations, and a great intro to different fairytales.

[Arnela · Rating 3 out of 5]

We have to round up because I am incredibly conflicted.

On one hand the art. THE FLIPPING ART. OH MY GOD HAVE YOU SEEN THIS ART. The soft colors, the character designs, the little details of their clothes, and the backgrounds, and EVERYTHING. The artist in me cries, I love it so very much. I want this artist to illustrate my stories. Flippin beautiful.

On the other hand the writing doesn't really match what the synopsis says the book is about. Yes it does show fairy tale characters either in the process of getting into bed or already asleep [or being tired] IN THE ILLUSTRATIONS. The illustrations show the characters getting to bed. But the actual rhymes that accompany the illustrations aren't actually following an overall story. The poems are incredibly short, they mention the characters on the page and sorta what's happening . That's not very bewitching of a rhyme as the front of the book suggests it will be.

Frankly I feel the words are pretty easy to miss cause the rhymes are only 4 lines a piece and [I don't know about you but] I can get lost just looking at the illustrations.

[Kendra · Rating 5 out of 5]

We all love Fairy tales in this house and even more so the Princesses. So when I found a book of poems that are based off fairy tales. I knew I had to grab it to read to my kiddos.



"Sleep Tight, Snow White" by Jen Arena was published in 2017. Everyone has a hard time not going to to sleep from Prince Charming to the Wicked Queen. Say good night to your favorite characters from fairy tales in this beautiful poetry book.



First, can I just say that the illustrations in this book are amazing. They are so colorful and gorgeous. They have so much detail on each page that it just draws your attention into it. I love the poetry in this book, there are 15 poems that are great to read for bedtime. My kids loved reading one to two every night before bed. I loved how it shows literature in a poetry form that is different then what most people see in a bedtime book. This book is a great read and must check out.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations! Swoon!

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Colorful digital illustration complement 15 different fairy tales and nursery rhymes intended to lull little ones to sleep. Some of my favorites are here, including Snow White, Little Miss Muffet, Sleeping Beauty, and Little Boy Blue, among others, but the verses were so short and sometimes used vocabulary confusing to young readers such as "chuck" that only someone familiar with the original stories and their characters would understand them. The idea is great, but it needed further embellishment, to my way of thinking. And I have to confess that I didn't feel a bit sleepy as I read these lines. If that was their intention--to make me sleepy--that wasn't the effect the rhymes had on me.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arena, Jen Sleep Tight, Snow White: 15 Bewitching Bedtime Rhymes. PICTURE BOOK. Illustrated by Lorena Alvarez. Knopf (Random House), 2017. $18.

Arena has written 15 tight little four line rhymes that are brilliantly partnered with beautiful illustrations that evoke a sense of wonder on each page. The rhymes mostly work, but the reader needs to be familiar with the tales to really enjoy them. The illustrations are the star of the book. I would love to have any of them as a print for my wall.

Pre-K, EL (K-3) – ADVISABLE. Cindy, Library Teacher
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2017...

[The Library Lady · Rating 2 out of 5]

The rhymes are forced and not terribly clever. The characters are a mix of Mother Goose rhymes kids may or may not know (sigh), and fairy tale characters they may not recognize because they don't look like the Disney versions. And I am sure that the multicultural cast and bright colors will raise the ratings for this, but I'm not impressed by the art--the faces change skin tones and hairdos, but the features look all alike, and it looks like a lot of the cutesy blog header style art that also pervades the jackets of many children's fiction books these days. I am sure this will fly off the shelves, but I hoped for a lot more from it both in text and illustrations.

[Emily✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gorgeous illustrations, and I love the characters are represented with a variety of skintones. However, some of the rhymes don't really make sense in the context of the stories/characters.

For example, one rhyme tells Goldilocks to take a bath, yet the illustration shows that the 3 bears are on their way back to the cottage... so they'd catch her in the bath? The Sleeping Beauty says that when she sleeps she's "a cutie", which maybe shouldn't strike me creepy but it sort of does. Kids probably won't really care about that, though!

[Jillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

The artwork raises this book from 2 stars to 3. It's gorgeous.

The rhymes, on the other hand.... If Little Red falls asleep, the wolf is still going to eat her. :p So no, don't forget about the wolf.
Also, some of the rhymes are a stretch. Cinderella, fella, and bella. Like, they had to resort to another language to make it rhyme. PLUS, it was a 'sleep will make you prettier to boys' rhyme. Ugh.

[Esutterlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clever simple rhymes will work very well for the children who already know the folktale or Mother Goose characters. Unfortunately, there is no appendix or intro in the back, so parents who weren't brought up on the nursery rhymes/fairy tales may not catch on. They are still cute rhymes, but their interest lies in their connection-- knowing who these characters are as they all get ready for bedtime.
I will use this in a Family evening storytime.

[Alexis Tesch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book really took me by surprise. The illustrations are beautiful, but also the incorporation of multiple classic fairy tails in a rhyming fashion was incredible, which is why I gave it five stars. The book goes through multiple fairy tails all relating it back to going to sleep, which is what I would say the theme is. Love, love, love this book!

Genre: Fantasy, Poetry, Picture-Book
Age: Grades K-3rd

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sweet book of rhymes about various characters from traditional fairy tales and nursery rhymes getting ready for bed. The illustrations are bright, cartoonish, and cheerful, and I like that the characters are portrayed as racially diverse.

My local library does a weekly evening storytime where kids are encouraged to come in pajamas and bring their stuffed animals, and this would be perfect for a program like that.

[Calista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Outstanding artwork in this one. Great colors that put you in the scene with each fairytale. Wonderful.

The book is simple. Each fairytale that might be read before bedtime is going to sleep. It's all told with well done rhymes. Each page is like snow White going to bed, or the Little Mermaid so forth and so on. There are 15 of them.

A silly thing. Fans of fairytales might enjoy this.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would be cute for a bedtime storytime or fairy-tale retellings storytime. The book featured a variety of fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters going to bed, and things they should do to prepare for bed. The illustrations were gorgeous, just like Lorena Alvarez Gomez's work for her book "Nightlights." Recommended for ages 3-7, 4 stars.

[Cecilia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The artwork in this book is absolutely stunning.

I wouldn't call the 15 bedtime rhymes "bewitching" as the front cover says, though. They are sweet and clearly thought out, but there isn't really a story here. It's like a childhood version of, "Go The F*ck To Sleep," with a fairy tale pastiche. Not awful by any means, but mostly just okay.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute book to put kids to sleep. The process of getting ready for bed and using rhyme and rhythm . The genre would be traditional literature and poetry. The pictures appeal to youth especially little girls and the age range would be kindergarten thru 4th. The story shows how each fairytale goes to sleep, and the process of getting ready for bed.

[Marcie · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a charming idea for a “princess” book! This book bids goodnight to some of the most familiar fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters in simple, short verse poems. The illustrations are bright and colorful, and I love the diversity of the characters. Overall, a great bedtime or naptime book for young readers.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I blindly bought this book online from my daughter's fundraiser and it ended up being a big hit. She's 8 years old with developmental disabilities and hard to get her to read /listen to anything but she takes this book to school with her and sleeps with it. My favorite one is the wicked queen rhyme.

[A. · Rating 2 out of 5]

The rich palette and artwork bump this clunker to two stars from one. The quatrains here are forced and anemic. What do clocks and tooth brushing have to do with Goldilocks?! This one is only for the most Disney Princess-obsessed reader. Poor thing.

[Read Ribbet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clever bedtime book which uses 15 familiar fairy tales and nursery rhymes that are recast as single stanza verses as characters do what they need to get ready to go to sleep. Good read aloud for getting that resistant child ready for bed.

[Ranell Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would rate this book three stars for the writing and five for the illustrations. Both of my girls really enjoyed it and convinced me to rate it four stars. This is a quick fairy tale inspired read before bed.

[Maggie Ignasiak · Rating 2 out of 5]

The illustrations are great, and definitely help me like this book a little bit more. But too many of the rhymes concern themselves with physical beauty, and that's so disconcerting. It lost a lot of effect for me.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains 15 bedtime rhymes each featuring different classic fairy tale / nursery rhyme characters. It's a sweet gentle read to help get your little one to sleep.

I loved the ethnic ambiguity in the illustrations, which are colorful and bright while being soft and whimsical. It also cracked me up that Prince Charming snored; it just proves princes are no different than any other man.