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The Sleepy Owl
Available once again is the first picture book by the creator of the international bestseller "The Rainbow Fish". When Little Owl oversleeps one night, she wakes to find that all the other owls have gone off without her. Soon she befriends a little boy named Tom who helps the sleepy little owl find plenty of playmates. Full color.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1986
66 people want to read
About the author
Marcus Pfister
557 books179 followersMarcus Pfister was born in Berne, Switzerland, and began his career as a graphic artist in an advertising agency. In 1983, he decided to dedicate more time to artistic pursuits, and began to write and illustrate his first book, The Sleepy Owl, which was published in 1986. His best-known work to date is The Rainbow Fish, which has remained on bestseller lists across the United States since 1992.
Marcus does most of his illustrations for children's books in watercolors. He begins each book by stretching watercolor paper over a wooden board so that it won't warp when wet. He then copies his rough sketches onto the paper in pencil. At this point, he is ready to begin painting. For backgrounds and blended contours, he uses wet paint on wet paper to get a softer effect. For sharper details, he first lets the paper dry, then paints the final picture layer by layer. When the illustration is complete he cuts the paper from the wooden board.
For books that feature holographic foil stamping, he then tapes a piece of transparent film over the art and indicates with a black marker where the foil stamping should be. The foil stamping is then applied during the production process after the pages are printed and before the final binding.
Marcus and his wife, Kathryn, work together in Berne, where they live with their three children.
Marcus does most of his illustrations for children's books in watercolors. He begins each book by stretching watercolor paper over a wooden board so that it won't warp when wet. He then copies his rough sketches onto the paper in pencil. At this point, he is ready to begin painting. For backgrounds and blended contours, he uses wet paint on wet paper to get a softer effect. For sharper details, he first lets the paper dry, then paints the final picture layer by layer. When the illustration is complete he cuts the paper from the wooden board.
For books that feature holographic foil stamping, he then tapes a piece of transparent film over the art and indicates with a black marker where the foil stamping should be. The foil stamping is then applied during the production process after the pages are printed and before the final binding.
Marcus and his wife, Kathryn, work together in Berne, where they live with their three children.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 13, 2022
4 sterren- English hardcover
Naar onderwijs assistent Miriam. School de Lynx.
Naar onderwijs assistent Miriam. School de Lynx.
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July 13, 2020This was cute but nothing remarkable. It is a tale of friendship that just wasn't meant to be. It is cute that they try and, even though it doesn't work out, they still think of each other as friends. I suppose it is like that in life - we don't have to spend our time with people to consider them friends. I have friends that I rarely speak to, but when we do, it is as if time had never passed.
November 27, 2018
An owl sees a boy using an alarm clock to wake up, so the owl gets the idea to steal the alarm clock, hoping it'll help his sleepy self get up better for his nighttime flights. Doesn't work out so well for the other nocturnal animals of the forest!
Cute idea and the illustrations are simple and colorful, touching in a way.
Cute idea and the illustrations are simple and colorful, touching in a way.
April 3, 2018
The Sleepy Owl is definitely on the same level as Rainbow Fish. Funny story, and my kiddos loved the thought of an owl in a tree with an alarm clock. Perfect for our owl week.
July 7, 2018
Great illustrations!
December 19, 2021
A cute story the kids enjoyed.
May 28, 2009
Sean's current favorite book is The Sleepy Owl. It's the story of an owl who over sleeps each night and misses playing with her owl buddies. She tries to befriend a young boy who gives her an alarm clock to help her wake up when he's awake. Of course this works out disastrously for her and her friends so the alarm clock has to be returned. In the process though, the little owl does learn how to wake up on time and the little boy learns something about owls.
It's the perfect story for Sean, a little boy who loves owls and has a pair he likes to visit on the weekends. Besides having loads of adorable owl drawings in it, it also has a clock and an owl painted kite. Sean also has a clock and an owl kite so he sees a lot of himself in this book. Last night we even had to tuck in The Sleepy Owl book when we tucked Sean in for bed.
It's the perfect story for Sean, a little boy who loves owls and has a pair he likes to visit on the weekends. Besides having loads of adorable owl drawings in it, it also has a clock and an owl painted kite. Sean also has a clock and an owl kite so he sees a lot of himself in this book. Last night we even had to tuck in The Sleepy Owl book when we tucked Sean in for bed.
March 10, 2013
This book teaches children that sometimes you have to make sacrifices in order to get an outcome that you want. Owl wants to be able to play with his other owl friends, but he never wakes up in time. Overtime, he learns that if he just wakes up a little earlier everyday, he can play with his owl friends.
October 14, 2012
Story of an owl looking for a playmate who learns. Eventually learns about being nocternal.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews