Goodnight Songs

by Margaret Wise Brown

Overview

“Baby sail the seven seas
Safely in my arms
When the waves go up and down
You are safe from harm.”

From Margaret Wise Brown, author of the beloved Goodnight Moon, comes a previously unpublished collection of charming lullabies, gorgeously illustrated by 12 award-winning artists. The roster of celebrated names includes Carin Berger, whose The Little Yellow Leaf was a New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Book; Eric Puybaret, who brought the bestselling Puff, the Magic Dragon to life on the page; Coretta Scott King Honor Award winner Sean Qualls; and Caldecott Honor medalist Melissa Sweet. An accompanying CD, with lilting songs beautifully composed and sung by Emily Gary and Tom Proutt, makes this the perfect gift to wish children a sweet goodnight.
 
The illustrators are:
Jonathan Bean
• Carin Berger
• Sophie Blackall
• Linda Bleck
• Renata Liwska
• Christopher Silas Neal 
• Zachariah OHora
• Eric Puybaret
• Sean Qualls *  Isabel Roxas
• Melissa Sweet
• Dan Yaccarino 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781454904465
Publisher:	Sterling
Publication date:	03/04/2014
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 1.50(h) x 9.50(d)
Lexile:	NP (what's this?)

About the Author

Margaret Wise Brown is one of the most popular children's authors of all time; her classic Goodnight Moon (Harper Festival), illustrated by Clement Hurd, has sold more than four million copies and her books—including Big Red Barn (Harper Festival), Runaway Bunny (HarperCollins), and The Golden Egg Book (Simon & Schuster)—have never been out of print. Several generations have grown up with her timeless stories and her influence has been felt around the world.

Date of Birth:

May 23, 1910

Date of Death:

November 13, 1952

Place of Birth:

Brooklyn, N.Y.

Place of Death:

Nice, France

Education:

B.A., Hollins College, 1932; Bank Street College of Education

Website:

http://www.margaretwisebrown.com

Editorial Reviews

03/03/2014
Twelve talented illustrators interpret gentle poems by the late Brown, all but three of which have never before been published. In an introduction, Amy Gary, editor of Brown's estate, describes finding hundreds of the writer's unpublished manuscripts 20 years ago, a "treasure of a lifetime" that contained (among many other works) the verse in this volume. In keeping with the "goodnight" theme, the poems tend to have the muted and contemplative tone of a lullaby, even when the subject isn't sleep. For "Song to Estyn," Eric Puybaret provides a gauzy image of a child in a sailor's outfit held snugly by his father on the deck of an ocean liner ("Baby, sail the seven seas/ Safely in my arms"); Linda Bleck strikes a more comedic note in her midcentury retro illustrations of wide-eyed forest creatures for "Goat on the Mountain." Animals figure into many of the poems, and Renata Liwska, Melissa Sweet, Zachariah OHora, and other contributors create strong connections to the text in their artwork. Musicians Tom Proutt and Emily Gary turn each poem into a song on an accompanying CD. A rewarding and visually wide-ranging collection. Ages 3–6. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

03/01/2014
PreS—This unique book was a long time in the making: more than 20 years ago, various unpublished works of the late, great author were discovered in her sister's barn, including many song lyrics. Presented here for the first time are 12 of Brown's lullabies, each one illustrated by a different award-winning picture-book artist. Each spread showcases the unique style of the illustrator and brings to life Brown's dulcet text. In "the noon balloon," Renata Liwska's dreamy pencil work is used to full effect as softly textured animals drift away for a midday snooze. Sean Qualls's fanciful and luminous nighttime sky perfectly accompanies the text: "When the man in the moon was a little boy…. He ran away with a shooting star." Carin Berger's collage scene for "When I Close My Eyes at Night" features 3D-like silhouettes of a sleeping village and billowing clouds that look like striped pajama pants. Nine other artists lend their talents, including Jonathan Bean, Sophie Blackall, Linda Bleck, Christopher Silas Neal, Zachariah Ohora, Eric Puybaret, Isabel Roxas, Melissa Sweet, and Dan Yaccarino. There is a timeless feel to many of Brown's lyrics ("Sleep like a rabbit, sleep like a bear./Sleep like the old cat under the chair"; "Baby, sail the seven seas/Safely in my arms. When the waves go up and down/You are safe from harm"), and children will respond to the gentle rhythms and soothing language. Accompanying the book is a CD with songs composed and sung by singer/songwriters Tom Proutt and Emily Gary. These tranquil poems are best shared one-on-one, preferably in the lap of a caring adult right before tuck-in time. Nothing but sweet dreams could possibly follow.[Ed. note: See p. 40 for a piece about this volume's intriguing backstory.]—Kiera Parrott, School Library Journal

School Library Journal

2014-01-22
It's a treasure trove: one dozen previously unpublished lyrical songs illustrated by the likes of Jonathan Bean, Carin Berger and Melissa Sweet. In an introduction, estate editor Amy Gary explains how she found a trunk in Brown's sister's barn filled with unpublished manuscripts with Brown's handwritten notes along with musical scores of her words. They were written in 1952, the last year of her life, when she was traveling in France for a book tour and under contract to create songs for a new children's record company. Brown's intent was to capture the spirit of a child's world in her songs as she had done with her stories. As the opening to "The Secret Song" demonstrates, the simple rhymes have Brown's trademark charm: "Who saw the petals / Drop from the rose? / ‘I,' said the spider. / ‘But nobody knows.' / Who saw the sunset / Flash on a bird? / ‘I,' said the fish. / ‘But nobody heard.' " Each song is presented on one double-page spread, each illustrated by a different artist (uncredited until an ending recap), in a rather staid book design that does not rise to meet the buoyancy of the lyrics. Nevertheless, children will enjoy the whimsical scenes, and adult mavens of children's literature will appreciate and delight in the background of the discovery. (CD) (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews