Alves, Katja.Time for Bed, Little OwlsCopy provided by Young Adult Books Central
Ten little owls live in a tree and have a delightfully cosy bedroom with a triple decker bunk bed, baskets on the floor, and even a hammock on the wall. When bedtime comes around, they aren’t very sleepy, especially when the Mama Owl has to take Hugo the bat home. She leaves a note for the reader to put the owls to bed. The owls hop and flap, and even hide, but come out when they hear clapping. We’re also instructed to call them in our softest voice, and they come inside to brush their teeth. Eventually, they all go to bed, except for Wide-Awake Owl, who is looking for his blanket. Once that is found, Mama Owl is home, and everyone drifts off to sleep.
I’ve had a soft spot for owl picture books since Waddell and Benson’s 1992 Owl Babies. This German import (I love the original title: 10 Kleine Eulen Wollen Nicht Schlafen), offers up an entire family of adorable owls who frolick across the pages, defying our attempts to get them to sleep. Their tree house home is cozy and full of items to find; it’s especially fun to look for the owls when they are hiding. I do have some questions about the size of the bathroom; it looks bigger than the bedroom for the ten siblings!
The owls are all very differently portrayed, and have different names; these are shown at the beginning and at the end of the book. It would be fun to assign an owl to a young reader and see if the bird could be located in every scene. I was especially fond of the owls bedroom, and loved that they are cozied up together.
Apparently, animals have as much trouble sleeping as toddlers do, if we look at Teague’s You Are Not Sleepy, Lacasa’s Sheep Number 19, and James’ Nana Loves You, Sleepyhead, and even Burton’s similarly themed Hey Little Night Owl. Time For Bed, Little Owls has a fresh approach to the trope of not getting to sleep by involving the readers in getting the owls to settle down.
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