Bedtime for Boo

by Mickie Matheis

Overview

After a night of haunting, Boo the little ghost is wide awake! But Mama Ghost knows just what to do to help Boo fall asleep. "Listen," she says, and Boo slowly dozes off to the comforting creaks and squeaks of the house. This lullaby-like picture book has the lyrical beauty of Margaret Wise Brown and is the perfect bedtime read.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780375981166
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	08/28/2012
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	34 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	2 - 5 Years

About the Author

MICKIE MATHEIS lives in a ghost-free but nonetheless spirited home in northeast Ohio with her husband and three young children. Growing up, the sound that soothed her to sleep at night was the furnace kicking on, which is still one of her favorite house sounds—along with the sleepy chatter of her children at bedtime. Mickie has written numerous licensed titles for young readers. Bedtime for Boo is her first original book.

Editorial Reviews

In debut author Matheis’s twist on a conventional bedtime story, a chubby, cherubic ghost named Boo lives with his family in a dilapidated house. After a fun night of flying and spooking, it’s time for bed. Coaxing Boo to sleep, his curly-haired Mama tucks him in, urging him to “Listen to the sounds of the house,” including the ghosts whooshing by, bats flapping, and black cats hissing. Leick’s characterizations of the ghosts, witches, mummies, and more are so gentle that even skittish readers will feel cozy, not creeped-out, at book’s end. Ages 2–up. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

K-Gr 2—Baby Boo is the youngest member in a not-so-scary family of ghosts. They are going "a-haunting," and Boo is excited since this will be the first time he gets to join them. Flying in the night sky, playing hide-and-seek behind the clouds, and whistling "happy-ghost-lucky" songs are all great fun. But it is all soon over and time for bed. Boo isn't tired, but Mama Ghost has an idea to help him fall asleep: "Listen to the sounds of the house," she says. Ghosts float by, "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh." Bats are "flapping, flapping/And footsteps tapping-tapping, tapping." Doors creak, skeletons rattle, wolves howl, and monsters moan. And soon little Boo is asleep. Those sounds are a familiar part of his safe and warm home. This rhyming tale is rendered with acrylics in dark, but not frightening, hues. It is suitable as a fall bedtime story one-on-one, or paired with Halloween favorites such as Eve Bunting's Scary, Scary Halloween (Clarion, 1986) and Lucille Colandro's There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat (Scholastic, 2005) for lighthearted seasonal storytimes.—Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA

School Library Journal

What begins as a lyrical bedtime book featuring a friendly, freckled ghost evolves into a gentle rhyming interactive story for not-so-sleepyheads. Lush language describes a spooky, dilapidated setting where "a family of ghosts" lives. Boo is the "littlest" and can finally stay up late and go a-haunting. After a rollicking evening of games with the big ghosts, Boo and his mama return home. When Boo protests that he is not tired enough to sleep, Mama suggests he "listen to the sounds of the house." Once his eyes are closed, he can hear the ghosts whooshing, bats flapping, footsteps tapping, spiders clicking, a clock ticking. The thrice-repeated noises get more boisterous and potentially scary: Witches cackle, skeletons rattle, monsters moan, wolves howl. But always there is the gentle, reassuring sound of the ghosts' whoosh. Leick's illustrations with muted colors and soft textures feature amiable, transparent human-headed ghosts who cavort and cuddle on full-bleed pages. This is most successful on double-page spreads, less so in the frameless side-by-side pages, especially where the gutter cuts off an owl's wing. Quibbles aside, this is a sweet tale for young preschoolers getting into the Halloween spirit. Similar tales abound, so purchase as needed. (Picture book. 2-4)

Kirkus Reviews