Erica S. Perl

The countdown to bedtime begins as farm animals go through familiar routines in preparation for sleep. Illustrations use bold shapes in primary colors, to complement rhyming bedtime rituals very well-known to children and their parents.

The rhyming conversation between a boy and his dad begins when a naughty chicken follows them home. As the father reads his newspaper, the boy asks, "You know what?" "What?" A turn of the page reveals the rhyming response. Rollicking good kid humor abounds in both the dialogue and the comic illustrations.

The rascally child introduced in Chicken Butt returns. Here, he gets his poor mom to say all kinds of rhyming words as he plays with homophones (think: but, butt; bare, bear). Cartoon illustrations add to the humor of the mother-son conversation.

Like many children, Ida is accompanied by her imaginary friend to her first day of school. As the year goes on, however, other children forget their chums. Not so for Ida and her ever-loyal Dotty who wind up in a bit of trouble. Charming illustrations depict inventive creatures and recognizable emotions in this reassuring story.

His teacher keeps count as a boy describes the comings and goings of the 93 human and animal members of his full household. Readers will want to calculate, too, as they enjoy the animated chaos in this engaging counting adventure. [Note — This book is out of print but available used on Amazon and in libraries]