Oliver Who Would Not Sleep

by Mara Bergman, Nick Maland (Illustrator)

Move over, Frances the badger, and good night, silly old moon. Meet Oliver -- a boy who *really* knows how to stay up!

Oliver Donnington Rimington-Sneep
COULDN'T and DIDN'T and WOULD NOT SLEEP!

And why should he? As soon as his parents shut his door, Oliver's off on all kinds of painting and reading, drawing and racing -- and a little trip to Mars for good measure. But his explorations end where all explorations safe at home, in a warm bed . . . asleep.

For every parent with an Oliver (or Olivia) in their lives, and every child seeking a little fun before shut-eye, OLIVER WHO WOULD NOT SLEEP is the perfect bedtime adventure.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Storytime, Adventure, Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Mara Bergman is an award-winning author, poet, and editor who has written more than twenty books for young children, including Bears, Bears Everywhere!; Snip Snap! What’s That?; Oliver Who Would Not Sleep; and Oliver Who Travelled Far and Wide. Born in New York and raised on Long Island, she now lives in England.

Reviews

[The Library Lady]

This has charm and reminded me of my favorite poems by A.A.Milne. The pictures are deadpan funny and work well with the text.

I do have to say though that the text has problems."Warm" and "room" don't even come near rhyming--couldn't the author have come up with a better set? And the rhythm of the poetry CHANGES, so I'd practice reading it a few times before reading it to a group.

Despite the flaws, it's funny and fun and kids will enjoy this. Though I wouldn't read it just before trying to persuade them to go to bed....

[Michelle]

Fantastic story of a little boy's imagination while trying to delay going to sleep. It has a wonderful rhythm, perfect for reading out loud.

[Linda]

Reminds me of Max and "Where the Wild Things Are". Great imagination. An excellent book to read to pre-school and young school children, teaching them to let their imagination go wild. There is nothing nasty or scary in it. Just adventure. Lovely illustrations that would appeal to boys and girls alike.

[Lauren]

I absolutely connected with this book on a personal level...as someone who is always busy and never wants to waste time sleeping this book was fantastic. I really enjoyed the rhyming patterns in the book as well as the adorable illustrations. I was also pleasantly surprised that the character's name Oliver Donnigton Rimington-Sneep rolled right off the tongue.

[Anthony]

I loved reading this book to my children before bedtime. Oliver has a series of wonderful adventures after his parents say goodnight to him. The writing is engaging and sweet and the illustrations are lovely. This is a book that children and parents will enjoy, especially if you have your own little version of Oliver.

[Jennifer]

The rhyme scheme changes in the middle of the book, which is a little funky, but the books is a lot of fun, too! Great for reading aloud to kids who do not like to go to bed. Preschool and elementary age would enjoy this fun book with great illustrations.

[Lauren Rader]

Lexile: 70
Text and illustrations work well together to tell the story. The text works with the illustration. The text is also quite large and would be easier for younger readers. A cute story, very imaginative.

[Jessica]

A boy named Oliver would rather stay up than go to sleep. (Is this every kid's dream?) So he rides a spaceship into outer space. Other than the kid's kind of creepy look on his face when he's not sleeping, this was all right. The illustrations kind of reminded me of Maurice Sendak.

[Emerson and Theodore]

Very nice.

[Jenna Mills]

Reminded me of Where the Wild Things Are. A bit bizarre.

[Charlotte]

Vaguely reminiscent of Where the Wild Things Are but lovely in it's own right.

[Terresa Wellborn]

Catchy rhyming picture book kids will love. My favorite Bergman picture book is still "Snip Snap! What's that?" but this one is fun, too.

Themes: bed time

[Jessalyn Plant]

We mainly borrowed this one based on the title character sharing a name with my little boy😅
The last page was the best page and so very relatable as Oliver finally finally finally falls asleep.

[Judy]

This book is fabulous, and I would have given it 5 stars but for a few little rhythm issues with the verse.

The cover doesn't do justice to the spectacularly good internal illustrations for one small but significant reason. The choice of the rather 'dead' blue colour in the sky which does nothing to compliment the illustration style, the other colours or lend anything to the cover design over all. (I think they were trying to say 'night time' but It seems very likely that the designer chose this colour treatment and not the illustrator.)

The colours throughout the interior of this book are wonderful! Subtle harmonies with sparky little splashes of complimentaries for some zing; beautifully handled and working so well with the varied line treatments.

I just devoured these pen and pencil lines. It's a banquet of delicate patterned hatching, bold outlines, gravelly patches of shading and imported wallpaper pattern all working together perfectly!

Anyway... fabulous! 4 and three-quarter stars :)

[Ariel Cummins]

Oliver wouldn't sleep. Not because he was scared, but because there's so much else to do that's more fun! Eventually, though, all that fun tires him out, and he drifts off.

Rough and loose pastel lines give this book a cartoon-y look, with unexpected swathes of texture interjected as wallpapers.

This might work for a preschool or slightly younger read-aloud, although the rhythm isn't completely smooth.

[Gwen the Librarian]

"Oliver Donnington Rimington-Sneep couldn't and didn't and would not sleep!" Oliver isn't scared...there's just so much good stuff to do instead of going to bed. One night, he flies his rocket into space. Join Oliver on his trip to Mars and see if he will ever go to sleep. This book has great rhyming text and amusing pictures.

[Tricia]

Cute book about boy who won't sleep and imagines he flies in his rocket to Mars. Would hesitate to read aloud due to mention of robbers/magic. Not sure if parents would take in spirit intended?

Addendum: wow, i can't believe I wrote that about one lousy line in the book. I'm using it for Jammy Jamboree, robbers be darned!

[Lauren]

This book is about a boy who would not sleep, he just wanted to play until he could not play anymore and fell asleep. This book is aimed more towards kindergarden. I think this would be a good book for around nap time. I liked it because it talks about what you shouldn't be doing when you are trying to sleep.

[Jane Njoroge]

Oliver who would Not Sleep
by Mara Bergman
The story is involving as the children want know if Oliver slept. The book tells how the parents read the bedtime stories tucked in snugly and turned the light of. But Oliver will not sleep. he wake up to play with his toys..Later sleeps after flying his jet.

[Alia]

What I expected: a bratty boy who refused to go to bed.

What I got: a kid with an imagination who goes on a lovely adventure while the rest of the world is sleeping.

How pleasant to be wrong!

[The Brothers]

Oliver is a little boy who would much rather play imaginatively than go to sleep. His creativeness takes him across the solar system until he finally starts to feel a little tired and heads home - to sleep!

Cute illustrations.

[Saija]

This book is a FABULOUS book for kids - our daughter knows many section of it by heart and will request and recite it for us (she is 2). Highly recommend it.

[Jeff]

A fun and fanciful book about (not) going to bed.

[Thia]

space, sleep

[Shelli]

Oliver is a night owl who can not fall asleep when his parents tell him to. Sneaking out of bed he uses this time to go on many adventures.

[Russell Mark Olson]

Beautiful drawings. Really lovingly done. Fun little story.

[Morbus Iff]

I quite enjoyed the artwork, and the words aren't all that bad. His imagination finally tires him out.

[Missy]

Fun read-aloud with a story in the pictures.

[Michelle Kelley]

Charming bedtime story about Oliver who simply can't sleep. We accompany on his nighttime adventures until he finally can't resist the lull of his cozy bed and lovies.

[Sarah Threlkeld]

This book celebrates imagination and exploration while also reinforcing the importance of home. The ending even made me yawn, just like Oliver.