Goodnight, little tough guy by Michael Wagner

Illus. by Tom Jellett. ABC Books, 2019. ISBN: 9780733339356.
(Age: 2-5) Highly recommended. Themes: Bedtime, Sleep. The bestselling creators of Why I love summer and Why I love footy team up again to bring us a wonderful bedtime story that will appeal enormously to all the very active young children who need to settle down and go to sleep after a very busy day. This is a delightful read aloud that adults will enjoy reading to their children, and kids will love the alliteration that forms an engaging part of the narrative:
'The lounging lion tames are lazily lapsing into the land of Nod,' and 'The cowboys and cowgirls are completely cactus'.
The book shows a multitude of activities that the tough guys of both genders may have engaged in during the day, starting off with the 'astronauts who are already asleep', resting wrestlers, firefighters 'fitting in forty fabulous winks', soldiers and pooped pirates.
Each activity is illustrated with humourous pictures of the little tough guys as they gradually go to sleep, all done in glorious bright colours. Jellett's many details will bring smiles to everyone's faces as they read about the different characters, both boys and girls, who are exhausted after busy day. It was fun to see the little tough girl who was a 'beefy builder' and a soldier and the loving relationships in the household pervaded all the drawings. Bedtime routines like having a bath, cleaning teeth and reading a bedtime story were all shown in the illustrations, and children will delight in the many ways that imaginative play is portrayed.
This is a delightful book that will promote healthy sleep to even the most active child. It is a keeper, one that is sure to become a big favourite.
Pat Pledger