Sleep Train

A lyrical, mostly lovely bedtime book. 

This visually dramatic bedtime book features mixed-media three-dimensional models that Eldridge (Claymates) creates using found objects. An opening spread depicts the bedroom of a young train enthusiast reading a book in bed. The brown-skinned boy narrates his imagined journey on the eponymous train, which is headed through purple-pink twilight into the starry night: "Listen to the cows going mooo moooo.... Listen to the whistle going chooo-chooooo." The boy counts not sheep but "ten sleepy cars going clickety-clack": the tender, a boxcar, a tank car, a cattle car, a hopper, a gondola, a flatbed car, a coach car, a dining car, and his sleeping car, all sandwiched by "an engine in front and a caboose in back." Spreads alternate between intricate views of the train's regal interior and a countryside bathed in day's-end light. London (the Froggy series) effectively uses repetitive sounds that echo both a train's rhythm and the soothing sounds of a lullaby. Eldridge's sculptural images create a fittingly dreamy world. Ages 2-5. Author's agent: Dan Mandel, Sanford J. Greenburger Assoc.; illustrator's agent: Lori Kilkelly, Rodeen Literary Management. (Apr.)

PreS--As dusk falls, an African American boy sits in bed, clutching his stuffed bunny and reading a book of the same name. ("Sleep Train. Jiggling down that track. Ten sleepy cars going clickety-clack.) The types of train cars are named and counted, up to 10, with a mostly effective rhyme. The boy is in the last car, the sleeping car, counting train cars instead of sheep, until his eyelids lower and he falls asleep, while the train keeps chugging along. The rich and jewel-toned illustrations of the sky turning from orange to violet as the book progresses, and the soothing rhythm, make this a perfect bedtime story. VERDICT This bedtime book about counting (and identifying) train cars will be a winner as a read-aloud and in storytime.--Ramarie Beaver, Plano Public Library System, TX

Eldridge's artwork is fully engrossing... a daytime delight for young railroad enthusiasts taking inspiration for their own layouts. Those will absorb the attention of young viewers who are less somnolent than their adults had hoped. -BCCB