Parenting Book List: Sleeping
Bedtime and sleep are important habits that should be set up early. And while some kids take to a bedtime routine with a quick yawn and snuggle, for others winding down at night can be very difficult. Creating a routine can help kids’ brains understand what’s coming up and what to expect – brush teeth, wash face, read a few stories, a couple of snuggles and lights out. Reading at bedtime allows children’s heart rates to slow and their bodies to relax after a busy day and encourages quality family time together with their caregivers. Check out just a very few number of bedtime stories that I love and would make great gifts for a baby shower or a child’s birthday!
If you’re looking for more topics in my parenting series, check out Potty Training, Babysitting and First Day of School and there will be more coming in the coming weeks. If there’s a topic you’d like to see a book list about, please leave a comment and I’ll do my best to create one!
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. Please read the full disclosure for more information.
Parenting Book List: Sleeping
Bedtime Bonnet by Nancy Redd, illustrated by Nneka Myers
In my family, when the sun goes down, our hair goes up!
My brother slips a durag over his locs.
Sis swirls her hair in a wrap around her head.
Daddy covers his black waves with a cap.
Mama gathers her corkscrew curls in a scarf.
I always wear a bonnet over my braids, but tonight I can’t find it anywhere!
Bedtime for Sweet Creatures by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon
It’s bedtime. But Mommy’s little one is not sleepy.
He growls like a bear, he questions like an owl, he tosses his mane like a lion. He hunts for water like a sly wolf, and hides like a snake.
Mommy needs to wrangle her sweet creature in bed so that the whole family can sleep. From tigers to squirrels to snakes, the little boy dodges around his bedtime, until he is tired enough to finally sleep. His imaginative animal friends weave their way through the illustrations, eventually joining him in curling up for the night.
A Book of Sleep by Il Sung Na
When the sky grows dark
and the moon glows bright,
everyone goes to sleep . . .
except for the watchful owl!
With a spare, soothing text and beautifully rich and textured illustrations of a starry night, this is the perfect “book of sleep.” Join the owl on his moonlit journey as he watches all the other animals settle in for the night: some sleep standing up, while some sleep on the move! Some sleep peacefully alone, while others sleep all together, huddled close.
Don’t Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late! by Mo Willems
It’s getting dark out, but one stubborn Pigeon is NOT going to bed! Children will love this interactive bedtime romp, which puts readers back in the driver’s seat, deflecting Pigeon’s sly trickery as he tries to escape his inevitable bedtime. Will you let him stay up late?
Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker and Tom Lichtenheld
As the sun sets behind the big construction site, all the hardworking trucks get ready to say goodnight. One by one, Crane Truck, Cement Mixer, Dump Truck, Bulldozer, and Excavator finish their work and lie down to rest—so they’ll be ready for another day of rough and tough construction play!
I Don’t Want to Go to Sleep by Dev Petty, illustrated by Mike Boldt
Frog is excited about autumn and the coming of winter. But when Owl informs him that frogs hibernate till spring, Frog is upset at missing out on all the snowy fun. In this hysterically funny twist on the classic “I don’t want to go to bed” dilemma, Frog comes up with all kinds of reasons why he’s not going to sleep through winter, until he devises a clever way to convince his friends to come along for the ride.
Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein
It’s time for the little red chicken’s bedtime story — and a reminder from Papa to try not to interrupt. But the chicken can’t help herself! Whether the tale is Hansel and Gretel or Little Red Riding Hood or even Chicken Little, she jumps into the story to save its hapless characters. Now it’s the little red chicken’s turn to tell a story, but will her yawning papa make it to the end without his own kind of interrupting?
Leo, Sleep Tight! by Anna McQuinn, illustrated by Ruth Hearson
Perfect for establishing nighttime routines, this sweet companion to Leo, Rise and Shine! and spin-off of the best-selling Lola Reads series is sure to delight. Leo had a long day, and it is time to get ready for bed. He slows things down with a bedtime routine focused on his five senses until he is relaxed and ready to snuggle.
Little Owl’s Night by Divya Srinivasan
It’s evening in the forest and Little Owl wakes up from his day-long sleep to watch his friends enjoying the night. Hedgehog sniffs for mushrooms, Skunk nibbles at berries, Frog croaks, and Cricket sings. A full moon rises and Little Owl can’t understand why anyone would want to miss it. Could the daytime be nearly as wonderful? Mama Owl begins to describe it to him, but as the sun comes up, Little Owl falls fast asleep.
Putting a twist on the bedtime book, Little Owl’s Night is sure to comfort any child with a curiosity about the night.
Sleep Like a Tiger by Mary Logue, illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski
In sincere and imaginative dialogue between a child and her kind and understanding parents, the little girl decides “in a cocoon of sheets, a nest of blankets,” she is ready to sleep, warm and strong, just like a tiger.
The lyrical narrative echoes a Runaway Bunny–like cadence: “Does everything in the world go to sleep?” the little girl asks.
Artist Pamela Zagarenski’s rich, luminous mixed-media paintings effervesce with charming details that non-yet-sleepy children can examine for hours. A rare gem.
Thank You and Good Night by Patrick McDonnell
During their first pajama party, three animal friends dance and play, and at last everyone is getting sleepy. Is it time for bed yet? Not before taking the time to say thank you for the day, the night, and good friends.
Patrick McDonnell’s gem of a bedtime book warmly captures the magic of a sleepover with friends, and reminds us to cherish life’s simplest pleasures.
Twenty Yawns by Jane Smiley, illustrated by Lauren Castillo
As her mom reads a bedtime story, Lucy drifts off. But later, she awakens in a dark, still room, and everything looks mysterious. How will she ever get back to sleep?
Pulitzer Prize winner Jane Smiley’s first picture book, illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Lauren Castillo, evokes the splashy fun of the beach and the quietude of a moonlit night, with twenty yawns sprinkled in for children to discover and count.
