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When the World Is Ready for Bed
As the whole world gets ready for bed, so does an adorable bunny family-brushing teeth, closing curtains, and sharing a story. The complete text of this sleepy, soothing book is captured in a new board book edition with sturdy pages and rounded corners.
26 pages, Board Book
First published September 1, 2009
3 people are currently reading
76 people want to read
About the author
Gillian Shields
59 books538 followersGillian Shields was born and brought up in Yorkshire, in the north of England. As she grew up, she had two passions:books and theater. Gillian’s love of books led her to read English at St. Catharine's College, Cambridge. After university she studied acting in London. She then taught in a drama school, the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, for several years, becoming Vice Principal. She recently taught English and Drama at Beechwood Sacred Heart, a girls’ boarding school.
Having children gave Gillian an excuse to carry on reading children’s books, as well as a motivation to write them. She has a son and a daughter, and is married to Brian, who works for the New York Times Media Group.
Hobbies, Interests, and Enthusiasms
I am currently learning Italian (or trying to!) and have a secret fantasy about going to live on the beautiful island of Sicily one day, and having a little stone house with a lemon tree in the garden, and a view of the blue, blue sea! I am lucky, though, because I do live in a fantastic part of England, full of soft green fields and rolling hills and cottages that date back four hundred years.
I like to go for long walks and see the changes that the seasons bring, and I try to imagine how it all must have been years and years ago, and how the people lived. I was brought up in the north of England which is much more rugged and wild—the backdrop to Immortal.
I also enjoy being in the city—although I wouldn't want to live there all the time, it's fun to go window shopping or to big new exhibitions or shows, or just hang out in a coffee shop with a cappuccino and a notebook and watch the busy world go by.
Something I enjoy is painting. I have taken quite a few art classes and find it very creative to work with paint and charcoal and images instead of words, though somehow I can't help adding bits of poetry and scraps of words into my paintings, too… When I was at school, I was completely obsessed by the Pre-Raphaelites, and I love the way their art is so intertwined with poetry and stories. My best friend is an artist and she is incredibly inspiring to me.
I hate cooking but love the idea of being a good cook and welcoming all my friends and family to delicious meals. So I have lots of beautiful cookery books but I never get past the first couple of recipes. Every so often I get madly enthusiastic all over again, but it doesn't last.
When I am writing, I can't listen to music—I find it too distracting, but I love to listen to the radio when I am driving. I listen to pop music in the morning and classical music in the afternoon. That just seems right somehow. My son is really into music, so I enjoy sharing his enthusiasms. At the moment we are listening to Eminem, Akon, NDubz, Chipmunk, Kanye West, plus Greenday, Michael Jackson…the list goes on. My current absolute favorite is Paolo Nutini.
Another interest I have is this amazing charity called The Smile Train which carries out operations for disadvantaged children born with harelip/cleft palate. Sometimes I feel I don't realize how lucky I am, and so it's good to try and do something to help a child on the other side of the world who isn't so lucky. My family also tries to support Sightsavers International, who do simple cataract operations to restore the sight of hundreds of people in the developing world.
On a more self-indulgent note, I love to get to the theater whenever I can, and to the ballet, which I adore. In another fantasy life I would definitely be a ballerina!
I can't imagine getting through a day without reading or writing. I know it sounds a complete cliche, but there it is. I go to a writers' workshop once a week to meet other writers and exchange ideas and read work in progress, and that is hugely important to me. And every spare minute of the time at home I am reading, reading, reading…What would we do without stories?
Education
St Catharine's College, Cambridge University (MA in Englis
Having children gave Gillian an excuse to carry on reading children’s books, as well as a motivation to write them. She has a son and a daughter, and is married to Brian, who works for the New York Times Media Group.
Hobbies, Interests, and Enthusiasms
I am currently learning Italian (or trying to!) and have a secret fantasy about going to live on the beautiful island of Sicily one day, and having a little stone house with a lemon tree in the garden, and a view of the blue, blue sea! I am lucky, though, because I do live in a fantastic part of England, full of soft green fields and rolling hills and cottages that date back four hundred years.
I like to go for long walks and see the changes that the seasons bring, and I try to imagine how it all must have been years and years ago, and how the people lived. I was brought up in the north of England which is much more rugged and wild—the backdrop to Immortal.
I also enjoy being in the city—although I wouldn't want to live there all the time, it's fun to go window shopping or to big new exhibitions or shows, or just hang out in a coffee shop with a cappuccino and a notebook and watch the busy world go by.
Something I enjoy is painting. I have taken quite a few art classes and find it very creative to work with paint and charcoal and images instead of words, though somehow I can't help adding bits of poetry and scraps of words into my paintings, too… When I was at school, I was completely obsessed by the Pre-Raphaelites, and I love the way their art is so intertwined with poetry and stories. My best friend is an artist and she is incredibly inspiring to me.
I hate cooking but love the idea of being a good cook and welcoming all my friends and family to delicious meals. So I have lots of beautiful cookery books but I never get past the first couple of recipes. Every so often I get madly enthusiastic all over again, but it doesn't last.
When I am writing, I can't listen to music—I find it too distracting, but I love to listen to the radio when I am driving. I listen to pop music in the morning and classical music in the afternoon. That just seems right somehow. My son is really into music, so I enjoy sharing his enthusiasms. At the moment we are listening to Eminem, Akon, NDubz, Chipmunk, Kanye West, plus Greenday, Michael Jackson…the list goes on. My current absolute favorite is Paolo Nutini.
Another interest I have is this amazing charity called The Smile Train which carries out operations for disadvantaged children born with harelip/cleft palate. Sometimes I feel I don't realize how lucky I am, and so it's good to try and do something to help a child on the other side of the world who isn't so lucky. My family also tries to support Sightsavers International, who do simple cataract operations to restore the sight of hundreds of people in the developing world.
On a more self-indulgent note, I love to get to the theater whenever I can, and to the ballet, which I adore. In another fantasy life I would definitely be a ballerina!
I can't imagine getting through a day without reading or writing. I know it sounds a complete cliche, but there it is. I go to a writers' workshop once a week to meet other writers and exchange ideas and read work in progress, and that is hugely important to me. And every spare minute of the time at home I am reading, reading, reading…What would we do without stories?
Education
St Catharine's College, Cambridge University (MA in Englis
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
July 5, 2013
Following the resounding success of my Locus Quest, I faced a dilemma: which reading list to follow it up with? Variety is the spice of life, so I’ve decided to diversify and pursue six different lists simultaneously. This book falls into my BEDTIME STORIES list.
I have a little boy and love reading to him, so this reading list will cover the classic (and new) children’s stories we’re enjoying together.
As I mentioned in my last review (for Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy ), it was my baby son's first birthday recently and he was given quite a few books. Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy is my favourite of the bunch (which is why it got reviewed first) but When the World Is Ready for Bed ran it pretty close and gets a highly respectable silver medal in my baby-birthday-books 2013 awards.
A family of rabbits is getting ready for bed: the sun goes down, the birds sing, they tidy up and eat their dinner, calm down, brush their teeth, cuddle their toys, etc. It's a short poem - 12 pairs of rhyming couplets - with soft words and gently rhythm, and it's dead easy to slip into a dreamy sing-song sort of recitation. The pictures are very sweet - almost too sweet, but just about bearable, like a builder's cup of tea, with so much sugar the spoon stands up straight - that's how sweet it is. And I don't even take sugar in my coffee, I like it black and bitter.
I've never been a big fan of rabbits. I've never understood them as pets - if you're going to step away from cats and dogs, then rats and ferrets have far more personality than rabbits. And in the wild... well. The fact that fast-breeding is their primary survival tactic says a lot about them as a species. I've seen a fox walk through a field full of rabbits at twilight, and there was this gentle rippling motion as the rabbits shuffled away from the fox. "As long as I'm not the closest rabbit to the fox, he probably won't eat me..." -- all the fox had to do was break into an unexpected sprint and he had dinner in his jaws! Wind in the Willows got bonus points from me for depicting the rabbits as cowardly simpletons who are dumber than a box full of hair.
So - having demonstrated my animosity to rabbit kind - the fact that this particular picture book still gets four stars from me is testament to quite how adorable this fuzzy little rabbit-people family is.
When the World Is Ready for Bed comes highly recommended. I'm sure when my boy is more interested in hearing the story than eating the book, he'll love it as a classic.
After this I read: Ripples In An Emerald Sea
February 11, 2010
I thoroughly enjoyed this gentle bedtime story featuring a family of rabbits preparing for bed. I was especially enchanted with the illustrations, reminded me of a cross between Shepherd's "Whinnie the Pooh" and Beatrix Potter's illustrations--the animals are definitely anthropomorphic but they somehow still seem like ones you would find in a woodland glen--and the setting is decidedly Cotswolds-ish. A sweet bedtime treat!
March 4, 2020
This gentle bedtime book, with its rhyming text and luminous watercolor illustrations, is sure to be a winner with very young children and the adults responsible for getting them to sleep. "When the world / Is ready for bed, / The sky grows dark, / The sun glows red" it begins, following the evening activities of a family of rabbits. From steaming cups of soup around the dinner table, to the ritual of kisses, hugs and prayers that precede climbing into bed, the little rabbits are surrounded by love every step of the way...
Anna Currey's endearing illustrations, which depict a world of warmth and light, are the ideal accompaniment to Gillian Shield's sweet narrative. The reassuring final passage: "Today has nearly / Slipped away; / Tomorrow brings / Another day. / Always lovely, / Always new, / Tomorrow's waiting / Just for you" offers the perfect conclusion to this lovely tale.
Anna Currey's endearing illustrations, which depict a world of warmth and light, are the ideal accompaniment to Gillian Shield's sweet narrative. The reassuring final passage: "Today has nearly / Slipped away; / Tomorrow brings / Another day. / Always lovely, / Always new, / Tomorrow's waiting / Just for you" offers the perfect conclusion to this lovely tale.
September 9, 2014
8* art
8* poem
Just lovely. All the familiar things in a child's evening set to rhyme and illustrated with warmth. Squirt points to the rabbits on each page and sits quietly - which is as high a compliment as he ever gives to a mere book.
8* poem
Just lovely. All the familiar things in a child's evening set to rhyme and illustrated with warmth. Squirt points to the rabbits on each page and sits quietly - which is as high a compliment as he ever gives to a mere book.
June 16, 2009
In an often too-sweet, deep sea of bedtime books, this new picture book manages to float right up to the top. I love every aspect of this one. The illustrations range from warm yellows, browns and oranges that parallel the sunset and the cozy inside of the bunny home to the cool blues and greens that emerge with the night. The story gently guides the little bunnies through their evening routine in perfect rhyme and simple text. Even the typeface seems to lend itself to the poetry of this highly recommended, soothing story.
January 15, 2012
This is a lovely book that would be excellent for story time at the end of the day in a foundation class. It is calm and tranquil and follows three young rabbits as they prepare for a good night’s rest. They eat their supper, brush their teeth, close the curtains, and prepare themselves for a story in bed. The illustrations are vibrant and detailed, whilst the text forms a soothing rhyming pattern. It would be perfect for winding down a reception class just before home time whilst also allowing them to relate their own evening routines to those of the characters in the book.
May 18, 2021
Positively adequate! A relatively standard bedtime book, with effortless rhyming and pleasant--if a little old-fashioned--art.
I don't think it will make it into my rotation of regular bedtime books but I won't judge you if you add it to yours.
I don't think it will make it into my rotation of regular bedtime books but I won't judge you if you add it to yours.
July 4, 2023
3 1/2 stars. Gentle illustrations and rhymes make this a calming bedtime story.
If I were to rewrite it, I would change the phrase “All the laughter, All the fun” to “Both the hard things and the fun”.
Recommended Ages 2-6.
If I were to rewrite it, I would change the phrase “All the laughter, All the fun” to “Both the hard things and the fun”.
Recommended Ages 2-6.
January 14, 2024
Lovely homey bedtime story. Beautifully captures the gentle warmth of the sun setting and a day moving toward completion, with positive encouragements of a loving family and a hopeful tomorrow. Includes a bedtime routine of cleaning and brushing teeth.
September 26, 2019
I wanted a nap after finishing this book. A good choice for a bedtime story.
March 1, 2020
Love this book, the cadence is great, the images are lovely and full of detail and my little really enjoys it.
November 25, 2021
Very cute board book for younger kids about the process of getting ready for bed. The text is rhyming and engaging and easy to read.
September 29, 2025
Read at WD library in WI
February 20, 2012
This is a beautiful bedtime book that my daughter adores. We first had a copy by accident from the little local library and immediately ordered a few copies for us and friends.
The book follows 3 little rabbits as they prepare for bed, the chat with daddy about their day, brushing teeth, reading a book, kisses hugs and seeing a start to guide them through the night. It ends with a promise of the new day tomorrow.
We have been cycling three bedtime books for the last year. This, Goodnight Moon, and Say Hello to the Snowy Animals. This one seems to be getting more attention than the others for the last few months. I enjoy reading it to her as much as she loves hearing it.
The book follows 3 little rabbits as they prepare for bed, the chat with daddy about their day, brushing teeth, reading a book, kisses hugs and seeing a start to guide them through the night. It ends with a promise of the new day tomorrow.
We have been cycling three bedtime books for the last year. This, Goodnight Moon, and Say Hello to the Snowy Animals. This one seems to be getting more attention than the others for the last few months. I enjoy reading it to her as much as she loves hearing it.
February 3, 2010
This little rabbit family settles down for the night after having dinner and cleaning up toys. The rhyming text, although not my favorite-it seems a little forced- has a gentle rhythm that makes it sound like a quiet lullaby. The last page is my favorite as it makes a promise that "Always lovely, always new, tomorrow's waiting just for you." Great for kids before bed. Using a watercolor style, Currey has created soft hues and tones to match the gentle rhyming text of the book. Just beautifully crafted illustrations.
March 16, 2011
Another sweet, comforting bedtime book. The illustrations remind me a bit of Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit. "When the world Is ready for bed, The sky grows Dark, The sun glows red." Mama Bunny is shown calling in her three little ones from their outdoor play. The rhyming book goes on to tell how the outside world prepares for sleep, while inside the bunnies tidy up, wash up, talk, and read stories. The next day promises "Always lovely, Always new, Tomorrow's waiting, Just for you."
September 4, 2009
if i had a little one to read bedtime stories to, i'd be taking this one home. There are lots of little details in the illustrations (of a bunny family, I might add) that can be used as talking points for some dialogic reading. It has those Caldecott-esque traits- when a book's illustrations really tell parts of the story that aren't revealed with its words.
October 9, 2009
This is a perfect picture book for little children in which the 'story' of 3 little rabbits carrying out their nighttime routine is told in simple but captivating verse. It's as soothing as a lullaby and the illustrations are enchanting - I have to read it at least 5 times to my little boy - he adores it and resists going to sleep so that he can hear it again.
February 9, 2010
A lyrical and soothing story that is perfect to read aloud to children at bedtime. The illustrations are soft and sweet and the story is short, easy to read, and follows a normal bedtime routine that is good for preparing little ones to go to sleep. If I had any complaint, it's that this book is almost indistinguishable from any number of go to sleep books featuring animals.
October 29, 2009
This book is beautifully illustrated and has a nice lullaby quality, but wasn't my son's favorite. He likes to get a little more involved now at 3 1/2, so maybe it would've worked better when he was a little younger and just liked being read to.
January 4, 2010
A great bedtime book with soft watercolor and ink illustrations that tells the story in verse of night time routine for a family of rabbits. The rhyming text makes the reading go quickly. Full of warmth and everyday details kids will recognize.
April 19, 2011
This book could help a child recognize the signs that nighttime is coming. I know it may sound pointless but it can work on the child's ability to predict future events. This book is also a great loving story book. This is great for kindergarteners.
September 15, 2009
Great picture book about going to bed. Illustrations are very nice!
October 2, 2009
Sweet! Beautiful illustrations remind me of B. Potter's books.
December 23, 2009
sweet bedtime story about a bunny family using gentle rhymes and warm illustrations. kids wanted this one twice!
January 6, 2010
Wonderful bedtime book about bunnies with beautiful illustrations. We checked this one out from the library, but my daughter enjoyed it so much that I ordered it for her.
February 8, 2010
Great for Toddler Time--good calm-down read.
February 18, 2010
Sweet little bunnies go through their evening from supper to bedtime in rhyme
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews