Who's Going to Bed?

The stars are out, the moon is bright… who’s going to bed? Not this little baby…. he’s far too busy!

The pirates have packed away their treasure and are settling in their hammocks. The animals have eaten their greens and are resting quietly. In the castle, the king and queen have taken off their crowns. Everyone is tired and they’re heading for their beds – except one cheeky baby who wants to bang his drum and clash his cymbals and wake everybody up! Trailing pirates, royals and bears behind him, the baby makes his way down to the shore where he finds a very sleepy dragon. She’s so tired! The baby and the pirates and the bears give her the perfect bedtime, with blankies and stories and lullabies all round. Now the baby’s yawning, too – and before he knows what’s happening, he’s being sailed and swung and marched and carried right back to his own little bed.

With its structured, rhythmic text and stunning artwork that evokes mid-century printing techniques, this book delivers an imaginative and comforting bedtime experience that will entertain and reassure at other times, too. Eve Coy’s deliciously muted illustrations conjure twilight on every page, with a soothing blue and brown palette enlivened by the rusty-red of the baby’s sleepsuit. There are plenty of details to spot, and Coy’s characters are trailed and reappear throughout, giving a sense of quiet order to this gently diverse story.

Eve Coy’s debut picturebook, Looking After Daddy, was published last year and has been shortlisted for the Klaus Flugge Prize.