Goodnight, Sleep Tight

 

As a little girl I always needed my mom or dad to read me a story before I could fall asleep. My parents would rotate through a stack of my favorites. One book that I loved was Time For Bed by Mem Fox and illustrated by Jane Dyer. I gravitated to the book because of its simple and comforting message and presentation. I was never one of those kids who liked the intricately illustrated children’s books. I also never really liked the children’s books that were extremely creative stories about fantasy animals and such. My favorite children’s books were the calming classics, which is why I loved Time For Bed so much.

 

Every night, my mom would crawl into bed next to me and begin to read the book out loud. What I loved most about this book was that the plot focused on the process of going to sleep. The words sang a soothing song and helped me fall asleep. Even when my mom would read me a different book, I would beg her to read me this one as well. Although there is no complicated plot, the sequences of events describe the process of falling asleep. This book goes page to page showing all different animals as they go to bed, concluding with a boy. At the age when my mom was reading me this book, I also really liked animals.

 

The animal I remember the most distinctively is the sheep. The sheep are on the cover of the book as well as in the actual story. The illustration shows a very tender moment between a baby sheep and a parent sheep. I remember noticing the sweetness and intimacy of the imagery. The whitish grey colored sheep comforted me as a little girl. They reminded me of one of my favorite stuffed animals. Every night I would sleep with my little sheep stuffy, which is why I gravitated to the sheep in the book. In the image, the sheep prominently fills most of the page. I have a distinct memory of the image because the sweet sheep jumped out to me from the foreground of the page. The blue-sky background glimmers with stars. This represents the night sky, meaning that it is almost time to go to bed, which is often challenging for children.

 

As a toddler, I too struggled to fall asleep, and in part, this is why this book appealed to me so much. I was the kind of child who thought about a million different things while I lay in bed. Most nights I would need my mom to lie next to me and stay there until I fell asleep. To sleep well requires a child to understand that sleep is possible, as well as desirable. Time for Bed gradually helped me overcome my sleep challenges by proving to me that sleep was indeed possible and desirable. Reading about the different baby animals going to sleep made me realize that falling asleep did not need to be a scary process. I think one of the reasons I sleep so well today is partly due to the fact that I read Time For Bed during my childhood. The book’s message taught me that all animals, including humans, had a bedtime. As I grew up, my bedtime gradually became later and later. However, this children’s book instilled in me the importance of sleep and the necessity of living a full and active life. I know that one day I will read Time For Bed to my children as they struggle to fall asleep. Time for Bed provides a timeless message to children focusing on the tenderness and comfort of sleep.

 

As a young child, falling asleep can be a frustrating process for both child and parent. Time For Bed provides visual and textual elements on the two facing pages with the image of the child that reveal the complete narrative of the story. The picture conveys the peaceful, gentle act of going to sleep. The image displayed on these two pages shows a mother tucking in her son. The bed is the largest object on the page, which reveals its importance. A bed symbolizes sleep. Sleep represents not just a leisurely activity, but also a necessary activity in order to function throughout the day. The mother’s embrace of the child reveals her care and love for her child. She places one hand on her son’s elbow and the other on the top of his arm. The reader only sees her profile, but this gesture clearly represents the warmth and affection she has toward her child. The reader can see the boy’s face clearly. He looks concerned and a bit frightened. Clearly he does not feel comfortable about going to sleep. However, his mother’s warm embrace assures him that he will sleep comfortably and wake up without a care.

 

The combination of the background, pillow, and sheets represents the night sky and illustrate that the time has come to go to sleep. A dark grayish/black/green hue spreads over the background of the image.  The darkness symbolizes the ominous night sky, which depicts the little boy’s fear of sleeping. In contrast to this dark background, the white sheets symbolize comfort and peacefulness. Similarly, the yellow stars on the pillowcase represent the bright lights in the sky that pierce through the darkness. Though children may be fearful of the night, they are securely tucked into their own beds with parents by their side.

 

The text on this page says, “The stars on high are shining bright- Sweet dreams, my darling, sleep well…” The words go hand and hand with the image on the page. Both the text and the image of the pillow highlight stars. The page conveys the main point of the story by focusing on falling asleep and dreaming. For the first time in the book, two human images fill the page rather than animals, which signifies the conclusion of the story. Light and comforting colors of white, yellow, and blue sweep across the bed, adding purpose to the plot, and revealing that bedtime represents a relaxing time when a child rests.  The fundamental message of the story demonstrates that sleep allows children to dream in comfort, knowing that mom or dad will be waiting for them when the morning comes.

 

As an adult I have a newly found appreciation for this book. Although I loved it as a child, I really understand its purpose as an adult. I admire the simplicity of the text and images however, the idea of the story is still clearly communicated. The subject of sleep is so crucial to a happy and successful life. When I read Time For Bed as a child, I was drawn in by the beautiful illustrations. Now, I understand the point of the book and the message it is trying to convey about the importance of sleep. Going to bed might seem frightening for a young child, however with the comfort of parent, sleeping is a time for dreaming and imagination. The book also raises the question, “What does it mean to sleep well?” Sleep needs to be presented to a child as something that is possible and desirable. In my case, Time For Bed satisfied that criteria.