The Princess Who Could Not Sleep

PreS-Gr 2—A much-loved, very beautiful princess keeps everyone awake screaming, "I can't sleep!" When sleepless nights and sleepy days become intolerable, the king proclaims that he will grant the wish of anyone who can make his daughter sleep for one night. Five ladies sing a lullaby, two gentlemen read fairy tales, two knights protect her from the dark, and three doctors prescribe a cure-all to no avail. Even the wicked fairy who brings a spinning wheel to spin wool from all the sheep in the kingdom (which the princess has counted without so much as a yawn) fails. Then the handsome prince arrives and shouts "Silence!" into the chaos of the royal chamber. In the quiet, the princess falls asleep, and her adoring prince will let her sleep as long she likes before he kisses her awake. An Leysen combines her own fanciful artwork with drawings by her young daughter-a fierce dinosaur, winsome mice, and a faraway princess among them. The many characters are richly portrayed in bright jewel tones against pastel backgrounds, which are embellished with hearts, flowers, and stenciled patterns. In the collage artwork, musical scores become the dresses of the dancing ladies, and the bits of fairy-tale text are in Dutch. This bedtime tale, with its nod to "Sleeping Beauty," is a treat to hear and a pleasure to look at.—Mary Jean Smith, formerly at Southside Elementary School, Lebanon, TN