The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep

January 25, 2016
The adventurous and ever-energetic Roger Rabbit is taken on a slumbering adventure by his mom to get him to fall asleep. Ehrlin tells a fun, short tale that can be used to help guide children to sleep. This production has two recorded versions of the story—one read by a man (Sanders) and one by a woman (McInerney). Both narrators succeed in delivering the tale in slow and calm voices that invite heavy eyelids and a relaxed disposition. The narration is accompanied by soft tonal music that only further induces a somnolent mood for listeners. Ehrlin uses repetition of sleep-related terms (tired, asleep, drowsy) to further nudge a child toward sleep and both narrators grab hold of such words and add soft emphases when possible, such as drawing out the word or even yawning through them. Though presented for children, this production could be quite useful in helping adults fall asleep. Ages 3–6.
A Crown picture book

October 15, 2015
That this title, originally self-published, became an international bestseller says a lot more about the desperation of parents of sleepless children than it does about the quality of the book.It opens with a lengthy note to adults that waggishly warns them of its soporific effects and then provides detailed instructions about how to read it. The story that follows is stupendously boring, but that's clearly intentional. Young Roger the Rabbit really wants to fall asleep, but he can't--he doesn't seem to know how. So Mommy Rabbit dispatches him, along with "you," to see Uncle Yawn. Along the way, "you" and he meet Sleepy Snail and Heavy-Eyed Owl, both of whom impart somnolence tricks. They are so effective that both "you" and Roger are practically asleep even before reaching Uncle Yawn, but somehow the two press on, are sprinkled with "powerful, magical, and invisible sleeping powder," and then drag themselves back home and conk out. Amateurish illustrations on verso (so negligible that the opening note suggests not showing them) oppose astonishingly text-heavy pages on recto. Key phrases in the text are printed in italic or boldface type, the latter calculated to deliver not-so-subtle subliminal suggestions to "fall asleep now." Practitioners of yoga will recognize Heavy-Eyed Owl's standard relaxation techniques. If the book works, it's because children will be bored to sleep, but it's a lot more likely that exhausted adults will succumb before their little ones do. (Picture book. 3-6)

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December 1, 2015

PreS-Gr 2-Roger the Rabbit cannot fall asleep. His father has nodded off, as have his siblings. His mother suggests that she and Roger take a walk to visit Uncle Yawn, "who was the world's kindest wizard and who lived just on the other side of the meadow." Written with a specific language pattern based on psychological techniques, this rather verbose picture book offers harried and desperate parents the promise of a magical story that will soothe their children to sleep, while offering relaxation and mindfulness techniques to help children take control of their thoughts and prepare for slumber. The artwork is mediocre and does not enhance the text. But according to the author's note in the front of the book, the artwork matters little; Ehrlin tells parents that "it is best if the child is lying down while listening, instead of looking at the pictures, so that he or she can relax even more." Ultimately, the book is instructional and didactic, specifically written for children who experience great difficulty winding down at the end of the day. VERDICT Most people should stick with the bedtime classics that soothe and calm, such as Margaret Wise Brown's Goodnight Moon, Mem Fox's Time for Bed, or Peggy Rathman's Goodnight Gorilla.-Lisa Kropp, Suffolk Cooperative Library System, Bellport, NY

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2016
"Instructions" tell the reader-aloud of this intentional soporific to "use your best fairy-tale voice" to relate the non-story of Roger the Rabbit who really wants to fall asleep and eventually--very eventually--does. The lengthy, repetitive text is an exercise in mild hypnosis; the pictures are ugly but irrelevant as you're supposed to go the ef to sleep, already.

(Copyright 2016 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)