In this cozy bedtime tale, a curly-headed toddler (of unspecified gender) grows drowsier and drowsier as a loving father carries the child off to bed. McGee's (The Forest Child) rhymed text, with only a few words per page, sets out the familiar preparations for winding down, accompanied by soporific repetitions of the word "sleepy": "Sleepy story./ Sleepy sighs./ Sleepy Mom/ will kiss my eyes./ Sleepy bed/ with sleepy bear./ My sleepy head/ will soon be there." Williams's (Jiggle Joggle Jee!) gentle double-spread watercolors, accented with softly shaded black pastel, combine the purple shadows of a late summer evening with comforting pictures of home and bed. In one picture, the mother, who is pregnant, leans against the doorjamb listening as the father finishes reading to the yawning child; white sheep adorn the wallpaper. A soothing choice for nighttime reading. Ages 2-5. (May)
