Author: Rob Scotton (Illustrator)

Publisher: HarperCollins

Pub. in: April, 2005

ISBN: 0060598484

Pages: 40

Measurements: 10.3 x 10.4 x 0.4 inches

Origin of product: USA

Order code: BC00280

Other information:  

It's a wonderful read-with-me book for children from the youngest years. The funny illustrations feature mostly cool blues and greens and white, and they have enough points of interest to keep the children intrigued, reading after reading. It's a simple story. One night Russell the Sheep can't fall asleep. He tries everything, but nothing works until he thinks of counting sheep, and that does the trick.

Russell is your average everyday sheep. When night falls though, he has a problem that no one else shares. He cannot fall asleep. He attempts a variety of different sleepifying techniques but nothing seems to work. He tries new sleeping places, new sleeping styles, and then finally tries to count stuff. Unfortunately what he tries to count are stars. It's not until he's struck by a moment of sheer brilliance that he hits upon just the right answer. "I'll count sheep". This doesn't seem to work until he remembers to count himself along with all his compatriots. Then, on cue, he yawns and falls into a fast sleep. Not long after everyone gets up. Everyone but a sound asleep Russell.

Children will realize long before Russell what exactly he should do to get his zzz's. Scotton adeptly balances the cute with the funny in this book, only messing up once. There's a moment where Russell, "thought so hard, his hat went ziggy-zaggy". Suddenly we've stumbled into cutesy-cupcake territory and an otherwise perfectly orchestrated book suffers for a poor choice of words. Otherwise, there's little to complain about. The illustrations are consistently funny and well-made. Russell is easy to spot in pictures where he is not the primary focus and his frog companion is a fun critter to spot from page to page. The palate used here consists of light blues and aquamarines during the day and deep purples and blacks at night. Anyone who has ever suffered insomnia in some way will instantly recognize Russell's wide-eyed desperation when the words, "What's a sheep to do?" appear on a page.

Scotton gives his sheep distinctive, quirky characters, and human-like habits. At night, one brushes his or her teeth, and another holds a teddy bear, and many of them fall asleep upside down, all four legs sticking straight up, and with nothing but patchwork quilts to cover them. Scotton's expressive sheep characters and the overall design book design draw you into his story. While the denouement could have been a bit stronger, this is an entertaining first effort from Scotton.

Target readers: Kids aged 0-3

Better with Grandfather Twilight :

			2 Buy with : ¥ 246.00
			Quantity:  +112345678910