Five little goslings take their time getting ready to sleep as Mama Goose spins a bedtime story.
White-feathered Mama Goose snuggles up with one of her offspring amid a lush bucolic landscape, “but not everyone is tired just yet.” One gosling gazes up at her; three others are still swimming in a nearby pond. A little one asks Mama to tell the story of Moon’s lullaby. Mama begins: “Moon comes out every night to sing. She sings her song to the rabbits, who scurry in the fields at dusk. She touches their ears and makes them twitch.” At this, one gosling chirps that she can scurry like a rabbit and wiggles her tail. Mama continues, calmly explaining how the moon affects honeybees, grasshoppers, nightingales, frogs, and other animals that live near English ponds. Moscardó’s expertly rendered artwork moves from sundown to dusk as the goslings sleepily imitate the wildlife Mama speaks of. “But soon the evening holds its hush.” Now, under a darkening, moonlit, star-studded sky, Mama describes silent behaviors of nocturnal creatures; soothing text and illustrations keep even owls and bats amazingly benign. Finally, Mama says, “Moon comes to my favorite part of the song.” Four goslings have fallen asleep, but the last one awake asks, “What’s your favorite part, Mama?” The tale ends on an ambiguous note, which may temporarily discombobulate some readers, but on the whole, this one’s just right to usher little ones into slumberland.
Sweet, poetic, and pretty. (Picture book. 3-6)–Kirkus Reviews
QUICK VIEW
