Bedtime, Not Playtime!

by Lawrence Schimel, Elīna Brasliņa (Illustrator)

A young girl is getting ready for bed when her puppy tries to play. First Rex brings his ball over, but she ignores him. Then he crashes story time, but she still doesn't give in! Finally, as a last resort, Rex steals her teddy and the chase is on! Under the table, over the chair, her daddies give chase and, at last, rescue the bear. Now it's really time for bed! Goodnight, Rex.

The cadence of this adorable rhyming board book will delight readers young and old.

Genres: Picture Books, LGBT, Childrens, Fiction, Family, Animals

16 pages, Board Book

First published January 1, 2018

About the author

I'm a full-time author, anthologist, and translator (Spanish->English) living in Madrid, Spain.

Writing in both Spanish and English, I've published over 90 books in a wide range of genres, including poetry (DESAYUNO EN LA CAMA and FAIRY TALES FOR WRITERS), children's books (LA AVENTURA DE CECILIA Y EL DRAGÓN, COSAS QUE PUEDO HACER YO SOLO, LITTLE PIRATE GOES TO SCHOOL, etc.), short stories (TWO BOYS IN LOVE, HIS TONGUE, THE DRAG QUEEN OF ELFLAND), graphic novels (VACATION IN IBIZA), and many anthologies (STREETS OF BLOOD: VAMPIRE STORIES FROM THE AMERICAN SOUTH, SWITCH HITTERS: LESBIANS WRITE GAY MALE EROTICA AND GAY MEN WRITE LESBIAN EROTICA, KOSHER MEAT, FOUND TRIBE: JEWISH COMING OUT STORIES, CAMELOT FANTASTIC, etc.)

I've twice won a Lambda Literary Award, for FIRST PERSON QUEER and PoMoSEXUALS: CHALLENGING ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT GENDER AND SEXUALITY.

My picture book ¿LEES UN LIBRO CONMIGO? was selected by the International Board of Books for Young People for Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities 2007 and my picture book NO HAY NADA COMO EL ORIGINAL was selected by the International Youth Library in Munich for the White Ravens 2005.

My poem "How to Make a Human" won the Rhysling Award for Best Science Fiction Poem.

I am also the publisher of A Midsummer Night's Press, a small poetry publisher, which has published THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED IN OUR OTHER LIFE by Achy Obejas, THE GOOD-NEIGHBOR POLICY: A DOUBLE CROSS IN DOUBLE DACTLYS by Charles Ardai, BANALITIES by Brane Mozetic, translated by Elizabeti Zargi, and FORTUNE'S LOVER: A BOOK OF TAROT POEMS by Rachel Pollack, as well as the annual series BEST GAY POETRY and BEST LESBIAN POETRY.

Reviews

[Trio]

I enjoyed the saturated primary colors Elina Braslina uses in Bedtime, Not Playtime. It makes the whole story POP. It's also visually pleasing the way the figures are off centered within each page. This adds a great deal of humor and emotion into Lawrence Schimel's story of a frisky, mischievous pup.

[Margit]

Mindig úgy fogok erre emlékezni, mint a könyv, amit a legtöbb pelenkázáshoz olvastam unokaöcsémnek. ❤

[De Grote Vriendelijke Podcast]

In de zesde aflevering van De Grote Vriendelijke Podcast bespreken we dit fijne kartonboekje. Luister nu wat we ervan vonden via Spotify, iTunes, TuneIn, je podcast-app of http://www.degrotevriendelijkepodcast...

[James]

fyi, 2 dads

[Maison Durr]

This cute, international fiction title normalizes same sex marriages as the main character gets ready for bed. The fathers both help catch the crazy dog and read bed time stories. The reading level is k-1 and would be good for read aloud.

[Jennifer]

I received an eARC courtesy of Orca Book Publishers.

[Tatiana Gomes]

li em português. interessante para abordar a questão de genero nas familias e progenitores.

[Liselotte]

Never thought I would love a boardbook as much as I loved this one but here we are.

[DBF]

Velmi pěkné ilustrace, zdařilý překlad do češtiny. Vtipné "zvraty" v ději.

[Carla]

An adorable early picture book about a kid who just wants to go to bed, but their dog does not. Loving the inclusivity of this one, and the faces the dog makes throughout are adorable!

[Octavia]

Bueno pero un poco simple. Entiendo el propósito de representar más familias queer, pero me complica cuando se hace a costa de la calidad de la literatura para lxs niñxs.

[Bella K]

Nagy kedvenc lett.

[Judit Rozsonits]

Kedves, aranyos, hétköznapi mese, azonos nemű szülőkkel mindkét történetben.
Szeretem.
Ha lenne gyerekem, ugyanúgy a kezébe adnám, mint a többi, általam kedvelt mesekönyvet, gyerekkönyvet.

[Julie Ditton]

"Bedtime, not Playtime" is a sweet story about a little girl who is ready for bed, but the puppy wants to play. Rex keeps interrupting the little girl's bedtime routine with her Daddies. Eventually everyone else is tired, but now she isn't! The silly story is told with catchy rhymes and bright bold illustrations.

This delightful bedtime story was released along with "Early One Morning". Both books are cute toddler books with stories that any child can love. Author Lawrence Schimel wanted write books that were just fun stories that took place in same-sex families, without them being stories about being different. That makes these books ideal for readers to see that these loving families are just the same as any others.

In Wales, every primary school received a free set. They have been translated into several languages. Although banned in Hungary and Russia, the books have received wide acclaim and won awards in other countries.

[Birán Barbara]

Véleményem szerint nagyon-nagyon messze van a kártékonytól. Ez két cuki történet, két kedves kis családról. Az egyikben két anyuka van (plusz egy gyerkőc és egy cica), a másikban meg két apuka (plusz egy gyerkőc és egy kutya). Hű-Ha! … Ettől aztán biztos hirtelen minden gyerek ilyen életet fog majd élni… Nekem tetszik, alig várom, hogy egyszer majd közösen olvashassuk a gyerekeimmel. Akiknek előreláthatólag két anyukájuk lesz.
Örülök, hogy ez a kis könyv létrejöhetett ebben az országban, remélem lesz még sok ilyen. Fóliázva vagy nem fóliázva, a lényeg, hogy legyen. (Remélem ezt a fóliázást hamar megunják. Nem túl környezetbarát.)
(a 4 csillag csak azért, mert igazából kb. semmi extra:D)

[Kristen Morris]

What a delightful read – I love this book!

Interruptions before bed are a given for anyone who has a pet, children, or both!

“I am sooo tired!” Time for bed you say? “WHAT??? - NO, I am wide awake, let’s play!”

This book was fun read for both adults and children. Facial expression and emotions portrayed though the illustrations were right on point, especially the portrayal for mundane tasks such as brushing teeth – meh!

Highly Recommend!

[Mary]

This is a board book with simple, rhyming text. In this board book we see a young child's bedtime routine but they're dog isn't quite ready for bed. The illustrations are nice and bright. The text is simple but it is a bit long for babies. I'd say the audience for this board book is more of a young toddler. I think they would enjoy the antics of the dog. The parents are two dads. (Read a digital ARC via Netgalley.)

[Polarka]

Malé dievčatko sa pripravuje na spánok, ale jej psík Rex má chuť na hranie. Aj po vysvetlení, že teraz už vážne nie je čas na hranie, to psík odmieta pochopiť. Večer sa skončí naháňačkou celej rodiny za ukradnutým plyšákom.
Čo je na tomto jednoduchom leporele výnimočné? Dievčatko má dvoch oteckov. Výborný spôsob, ako predstaviť deťom rôzne formy rodiny.

[Joy Z]

I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The art is bold and colourful, and the story line is quite cute, a little girl who lives with her two dads is getting ready for bed, but her dog has other plans. My 5 years old did ask, " how come she has two dads, and I only have one", but that wasn't an issue.

[Lesley]

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book and choose to leave a review.

I'm impressed that this book shows a non-traditional family. The rhyming is fun, and the situations are realistic. High points for no-one being mad at the dog, for just being a dog. The illustrations a excellent. A very delightful book.

[Darcie Jenkins]

A young girl and her two father's chase their dog around the house when he is too rambunctious for bed. Full of adorable rhyming, inclusive illustrations, and fast-paced movement, this board book is an all around winner!

[Hanneleele]

Samuti vahva!

[Ketija]

Mazais cilvēks pagaidām akceptē bez jautājumiem un priecājas, ka meitene arī tīra zobus.

[Stef]

This is a quick read. I love that it shows a family with two dads. It has great illustrations and lots of rhyming which I always like in kid's books.

[Anna]

This story just came out in Hungary in one book with another one. I found it really cute and I'm glad I'll have it to read it to my children one day.