Five Faves: Bedtime Board Books

A soothing bedtime routine is key to sending any young child off to dreamland. A soft snuggle with a caregiver and a book before bed is a comforting way to add to this essential process. Here are five books to help make bedtime just a little easier:

When Stars Arise

Written by E.G. Alaraj

Illustrated by Martyna Czub

Victoria, British Columbia: Orca Book Publishers, 2023. Board Book.

Soft watercolor illustrations gently emphasize the routine of a child's day drawing to a close.

You Are Getting Sleepy

Written by Lori Alexander

Illustrated by Monica Mikai

New York: Scholastic Inc., 2022. Board Book.

Loving parents hypnotically repeat that, "YOU are getting sleepy" in this gently humorous story that will soon have your own little one yawning along as well.

Sleep, My Baby

Written by Dr. Lena Allen-Shore with Jacques J. M. Shore

Illustrated by Jessica Courtney-Tickle

New York: Little Simon, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, 2021. Board Book.

Follow mothers around the world as they lovingly sing and soothe their babies' to sleep.

Everyone's Sleepy but the Baby

Written by Tracy C. Gold

Illustrated by Adèle Dafflon

Fresno, California: Familius LLC, 2021. Board Book.

Parents will universally empathize with this family where everyone is sleepy except for the baby. What will it take for this tyke to hit the hay?

The Night Is Deep and Wide

By Gillian Sze and Sue Todd

Victoria, British Columbia: Orca Book Publishers, 2021. Board Book.

High contrast, stunning illustrations will visually draw your baby's eye as lullaby-like text follows the journey of a little girl as the creatures around her home drift off to sleep.

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Painting for Peace in Ferguson

Painting for Peace in Ferguson By Carol Swartout Klein Treehouse Publishing Group, 2015. Nonfiction. When the city of Ferguson was overrun with so much hate and despair that homes and businesses had to be boarded up to protect property, citizens of the community decided to bring a message of hope by painting the boarded windows. Klein’s rhyming text supports the photographs of the hundreds of artists and volunteers and their artwork as they bring the messages of peace, hope, love, and that by being united they can make a difference. A great book to show children how a community rallied to make a positive change and that even a small gesture can make a huge difference. A great discussion opener on how we should treat each other.

Dragon Run

Dragon Run by Patrick Matthews Scholastic, 2013. 336 pgs. Fantasy Al Pilgrommor is excited for Testing Day, when he will receive his rank, a tattooed number on the back of his neck, and a path forward to his future occupation and life. He feels confident because his parents were fours on a scale of seven, but he is worried for his friend Wisp who doesn't have much of a chance of scoring above a two at best. But when Al is scored a zero, he not only has no prospects, he may lose his life as the dreaded Cullers are unleashed to kill him and his family to purify the land's bloodlines. Al's world is ruled by dragons--the lords and supposed creators of humankind--so he thinks that even if he survives, he will have to make his living as a beggar or thief. But when Al sticks up for his Earther friend in front of Magister Ludi, he is drawn into the struggle of a secret organization hoping to destroy the Cullers, and perhaps the dragons them...

Review: We're All Gonna Die-Nosaur!

We’re All Gonna Die-nosaur! By Kon Tan New York: Disney Hyperion, 2025. Intermediate. 157 pages. Pterry (the “p” is silent) pterodactyl is a worry wart. Pterry is worried about flying (he doesn’t how to fly yet), dinosaurs going extinct (he had a scary dream), and how to protect his family (he has a little brother who hasn’t fully hatched from an egg yet). Even though there is a lot of feels for Pterry, this is actually quite a funny book. Pterry tries to learn how to fly with kites as his “training wheels” and his brother who is inside an egg is quite the adventurer. This is a funny, heart-felt comic-like intermediate fiction book that will be great for many readers. If kids love dinosaurs, this book is for them. If kids like funny graphic novels, this book is for them. If kids want to read something about facing fears and doing things even though they don’t always want to, this book is for them. Plus, even though Pterry does a lot of things on his own, he still has s...

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