NIGHT SHIFT DADDY

In lyrical rhyming verse, Spinelli (When Mama Comes Home, 1998) has captured the affectionate ritual of a father and young daughter as they prepare for bedtime. In this tender and moving picture book, Daddy reads a good-night story to his daughter as they cuddle together in the rocking chair. Later, Daddy tucks in his sleepy child with kisses on the nose, asking, “How cozy are those toes?” As Daddy leaves for his nightshift job, he is unaware that his daughter is seeing him safely off from her darkened bedroom window. She drifts into slumber happily imagining her father at work. As the sun rises and Daddy returns home, we see a charming reversal of last night's routine as the little girl tucks her father under the covers and fluffs his pillow before going out to play. In this cozy lap-read each full-page illustration is exquisitely rendered in deep, rich tones sure to invoke sweet dreams. (Picture book. 4-7)