From the Bookshelf of Mineola Library's 2012 FALL Reading Challenge…

Goodnight Moon

Margaret Wise Brown,

Clement Hurd (Illustrator)

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

No group discussions for this book yet.

What Members Thought

Jun 03, 2009 Suzanne Moore rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: spring-challenge-picks, top-100-picture-books, childrens-1001-0-3, easy-childrens

As a young child I hated to go to bed, for fear I would miss something. This bedtime story will help young children fall asleep easily as its pictures and texts combined take them into restfulness and finally deep sleep.

The opening scene shows bold, bright colors of dark value. The bunny is wide awake sitting up in his bed looking at the telephone on the bedside. The text mentions the telephone, along with a red balloon. The reader may wonder why the telephone is mentioned. Maybe the bunny thi As a young child I hated to go to bed, for fear I would miss something. This bedtime story will help young children fall asleep easily as its pictures and texts combined take them into restfulness and finally deep sleep.

The opening scene shows bold, bright colors of dark value. The bunny is wide awake sitting up in his bed looking at the telephone on the bedside. The text mentions the telephone, along with a red balloon. The reader may wonder why the telephone is mentioned. Maybe the bunny thinks it might ring. He seems to be sitting up waiting for something. On the next page the colors are achromatic. Throughout the book the pages alternate between color and achromatic. I think this may be a strategy for making you sleepy. If every page were bright, the colors could act as a stimulant. Eventually another Bunny appears, this one an “old lady.” This “old lady” has her paw raised to her lips which corresponds to the text whispering “hush.” The bedside lamp casts light above and below the lampshade, illuminating the darkening room. The colors of the room directly touched by the lamplight are just a hint lighter, giving the room a cozy feel. The “old lady” has knitting in her lap, possibly sitting with the bunny until he goes to sleep. If you notice a strand of yarn leading from her lap to the floor, this straight line turns into curvy, tangled lines that show you the kittens are not sleepy yet. They are having too much fun playing with the ball of yarn.

Towards the end, the kittens are shown sitting alert and still, and if you notice the direction they are facing: They are both looking at the “old lady.” Her yarn has been rolled up, leaving the kittens nothing to play with. The text mentions her saying “hush” again. You can imagine that she is speaking in quiet tones as you study the setting and the room is beginning to grow darker. I noticed that the bunny changes positions in the bed from page to page. This leads me to believe that he was trying to fight sleep and stay awake, like many children do at bedtime. Then finally in the end the bunny is asleep, the room is totally dark. I think the artist washed over the picture with a light covering of watered down black paint. The effect allows the reader to see into the room, imagining your eyes have adjusted to the dark, and with your night vision see the basic outlines. Still the room is not pitch dark, because there are two windows letting in moonlight and showing shining stars. The “old lady” has left the room, which tells us the bunny is finally asleep, and the kittens have resigned to sleep themselves, as they curl up in the chair once occupied by the “old lady” bunny.
...more

Like · see review

Sep 18, 2011 Lynn rated it it was ok

Shelves: kids

Feb 16, 2012 Margo rated it it was amazing

Aug 21, 2013 Kimberly Hortman rated it it was amazing

Group Home Bookshelf Discussions

Photos Videos

Send invite Members Polls