Goodnight Sam
Marie Louise Gay

Allen & Unwin 2003
32pp., hbk., $16.95
174114129X

Goodnight Sam by Marie-Louise Gay is a simple story about bedtime for Sam and his sister Stella. The children are having trouble getting to sleep – especially Sam who can’t find his toy , Fred. The kids try to find Fred under the bed, in the cupboard, in the lounge room – they even think about going outside to look, but decide not to be cause it’s dark. They go back to bed and try to count sheep (Sam can only count to three!) and Sam finds Fred under his quilt. It is a nice touch at the end of the story when Sam says he still can’t get to sleep because Fred is snoring. The pictures are very soft. The language used would be very easy for children from about three years of age to understand if some one read the book to them. It would be good for young children aged from about three to six years. Four stars out of five for the right age group.

David, 9, Flinders NSW