Bedtime at Bessie and Lil's

PreS-K—Mama Rabbit would very much like her two energetic daughters to go to bed. Bessie does headstands; Lil practices skipping. When Mama Rabbit isn't reminding the girls not to wake the baby, she reads aloud from one of her favorite bedtime stories, a sweet, soothing tale reminiscent of Goodnight Moon. While the main story about Mama, Bessie, and Lil is painted in kinetic pinks and purples, the pages of the story-within-a-story have gentler shapes and tints and are cleverly encased in book-shaped frames. These few scenes interrupt the action and insert brief moments of calm among the bedtime escapades. They are also—with the exception of the book's final page—the only times that Bedtime at Bessie and Lil's might succeed in easing young readers toward sleep. This raises two pertinent questions: Is this a bedtime story? What age group will enjoy it? While the language and plot may appeal to younger children (and to mothers who empathize with Mama Rabbit), it may be too wordy for little ones. Gudeon's lively illustrations, though, combine with the upbeat young rabbits' exploits to make this an entertaining daytime read for kindergarteners.