Good Morning, Grumple

This padded storybook with sturdy cardstock pages follows a mother’s persistent efforts to get her sleepy “grumple” out of bed in the morning. Allenby’s intermittently rhyming text traces the mother’s escalating actions, which involve singing ever-louder: “If it only mumbles, ‘No,’/ Tickle just one piggy toe/ And sing just a bit louder:/ Oh—Oh—Don’t you pout./ The sun is sweeping the shadows out.” Gauthier’s naif collages sweetly emphasize the warmth between parent and child (they resemble a cross between a panda and a squirrel), even when the little one’s eyes are squeezed tight in a desperate attempt to hang onto sleep a little longer. Ages 1–3. (Mar.)