Children's Book Reviews

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The Drowsy Hours: Poems for Bedtime by Susan Pearson, Illustrated by Peter Malone
HarperCollins, June, 2002
Picture Book, 40 pages
ISBN: 0688166032
Ages 3 and up
Ordering information:
Amazon.com

In our busy stress-filled world, adults often have little time and patience for poetry. But children, as yet untouched by the impossibility of doing it all, are still open to the rhythm and emotion of poetry. Bedtime, which can become an emotional tug of war, is one of the best times to share poetry with a child. The Drowsy Hours is a collection of poems from our most admired poets: Carl Sandburg, Walter De La Mare, Robert Louis Stevenson, Eugene Field and Vachel Lindsay. Combined with the drowsy, flowing rhythms of the poems are the fantasy-filled illustrations of Peter Malone. His illustrations are so filled with drama and magic that a child will carry their images along with the verbal images of the poetry into peaceful slumber and happy dreams. The Drowsy Hours is definitely a book that will leave a child open to his own happy dreams and fantasies.

-Sarah Reaves White

Here Comes Santa Claus by Gene Autry, Oakley Haldeman, Illustrated by Bruce Whatley
HarperCollins, October, 2002
Picture Book, 32 pages
ISBN: 0060282681
Ages 3 and up
Ordering information:
Amazon.com

Here Comes Santa Claus
by Gene Autry, Oakley Haldeman, Illustrated by Bruce Whatley

This children's book takes the beloved Christmas song "Here Comes Santa Claus" by Gene Autry and Oakley Haldeman, and turns it into an adorable, illustrated short story. Each verse in the song is presented as a page in the book with attractive and colorful illustrations by Bruce Whatley. The story and drawings tell the tale of Santa Claus heading out for his annual Christmas deliveries with a small puppy that has secretly stowed away on his sleigh. Fortunately, Santa ends up needing the puppy as a gift for a special young boy who has been dreaming of having a puppy all of his very own. The inside front and back covers of the book include the words and music to the song, so if you have a guitar or piano, you can play and/or sing along. Whatley, whose illustrations have appeared in other children's favorites like Captain Pajamas, Wait! No Paint! and The Ugliest Dog in the World, captures the magic of Christmas in his drawings: the puppy who longs for an owner, the joy in the boy's face when he receives the puppy and Santa happily delivering his presents around the world. This is a great book to read and share with children on the days leading up to Christmas.

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Children's Book Reviews

The Drowsy Hours: Poems for Bedtime by Susan Pearson, Illustrated by Peter Malone

Here Comes Santa Claus by Gene Autry, Oakley Haldeman, Illustrated by Bruce Whatley