The Prince's Bedtime

by Joanne Oppenheim, Miriam Latimer (Illustrator)

The cook brings cookies, the maid brings hot milk and the physician brings medicine, but the young Prince will not sleep. So the King and the Queen try an entire troupe of dancers, a mustached musician, a feather down quilt and even a cake! Still, the Prince will not close his eyes. Will the strange woman at the palace gate hold the key to the Prince s slumber?

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Royalty, Storytime, Princesses

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2006

Reviews

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Night after night they tried to amuse him.
Night after night there was endless confusion.

Jugglers tried juggling. Jesters made gestures.
Learned professors made countless conjectures.

Nurses sang a lullaby. Cook baked a cake.
But alas the small Prince still stayed awake.

This was fun!

Oppenheim's rhyming tale about a kingdom's attempts to get a young royal to sleep is very sweet, though the enjoyable story, combined with Miriam Latimer's colorful and energetic artwork, may not encourage many sleepyheads among young audience members.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basic Plot: A little boy who doesn't want to go to bed and tires out everyone around him in the process.

Side note: I'm disturbed by the frequency of my use of the word "cute" when reviewing children's books. I must find better adjectives.

It's fun but I have yet to get the 4-year-old to sit through a full reading, so only 3 stars. A good library pick.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book offers a simple little tip for your child that won't go to sleep. There isn't a potion, or dancing, or a fancy bed...all that is needed is a good book and a bedtime story!

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! It is definitely one of my favorite books for children.

[Tawni Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had stopped writing reviews for children's books because we were getting through them so quickly and keeping up with reviews seemed tedious. THIS book however was worth getting in to give five stars. A darling, rhyming bedtime story that my kids fight over to listen to on CD. Great rhythm to this fun story trying to get the little Prince to sleep. They end up succeeding with the best method :-)

[Donna-Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can now listen to this story via the Barefoot Books Podcast.

[Werereadingandwriting · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect book for a bedtime story. Truly charming

[Emmi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the words this book added to Reid's vocabulary, like "learned professors made countless conjectures."

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a cute story, but my 3 year old son didn't pay much attention to it. Maybe he just wasn't in the mood.

[Ryan Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story with a pro-reading bent at the end. Popular with my 2-year-old.

[lunarlibrarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rhyming book

[Camille · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was a fantastic bedtime story and great to read to your little sisters when they are getting antsy!

[Saritza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great bedtime reading material for parents of young ones who have trouble winding down at bedtime. In fact, I'm giving this one to my sister for her little boy.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Secret to getting to sleep.

[Abby Peskin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The members of a castle have tried so many fancy tricks to get the prince to fall asleep at bedtime, including medicine, entertainment, magicians, and more. But they find that maybe a simple bedtime story would be the most effective solution.

[Miriam · Rating 3 out of 5]

The king tried many things to get his son to sleep, but the only thing that worked was reading him a book and telling him to close his eyes to picture what is happening in the story.

[Rayn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oeh, dit vond ik een leuk boek om te lezen! Leuke tekeningen bij een leuk energiek verhaal met een goed einde. Heerlijk. Alleen dat lettertype! Ahh

[Kelly Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rhyming picture book that is similar to the book King Bidgood's in the Bathtub.

[Terry]

Pictures and rhyming text keep the kids engaged in the story. It will lead to reading more books at bedtime!