ALA Booklist

Fans of Brown and Katz's A Child's Good Morning Book (2009) may want to close their days with this companion alphabet lullaby: "A is for Aaaah when a small kitten sighs / B is for Baaaaaa when the lambs close their eyes." Katz's interpretation of Brown's text (last illustrated by Esphyr Slobodkina in 1994) is joyful and energetic and features her trademark, round-faced, multicultural children, rendered in collage-like art, bouncing around a sunshine-bright room before they finally catch their Zs in a very realistic bedtime pattern. Likely to be just what little not-yet-sleeping beauties will want.

Horn Book

Busy, collagelike pictures illustrate concepts associated with sleeping for each letter of the alphabet. 'A is for Aaaaah when a small kitten sighs / B is for Baaaaaa when the lambs close their eyes.' Though the bright colors and energetic design of the pictures seem unsuited to a bedtime book, the book has a freshness and style that transcends its intended purpose.

Kirkus Reviews

Take an old story by a skilled wordsmith (the text dates from 1953 and was originally accompanied by Esphyr Slobodkina's illustrations), add cheerful, cuddly illustrations and a fresh new ABC book that's also a bedtime tale is born. From "A is for Aaaah / when a small / kitten sighs" to "Z is for Zipper. / Now zip into bed," the simple rhymes for each letter of the alphabet are illustrated with Katz's signature multicultural, round-headed, roly-poly kids. The choice of words is not typical or obvious; instead of B for blanket, "B is for Baaaaa / when the lambs / close their eyes," and C is for caw "when the last crow crows." L is for listening; D is for dreams; U is for nothing Under the bed; and "X is for all the things you can play." The book is a companion to Brown's A Child's Good Morning Book (2009), also illustrated by Katz. It's bound to find its way to many a bedside table, to be rightly enjoyed by a new generation. (Picture book. 3-6)

School Library Journal (Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2010)

PreS With lines like "I is for me who is going to bed," and "X is for all of the things you can play," it is hard to find much good to say about this lackluster offering. Katz's characteristic round-headed multicultural babies wander through the pages, along with sheep, bunnies, and a variety of typical bedtime accoutrements. The brightly colored mixed-media illustrations are likely to appeal to young children, and the combination of Brown's name and the word "sleepy" on the cover will probably sell the title. Nonetheless, this uninspired mix of bedtime and alphabet book fails to do justice to either genre. Buy extra copies of Goodnight Moon and some of Karen Katz's board books and pass on this one. Amy Lilien-Harper, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT