Book Review: Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

“In the great green room, there was a...”

...little boy snuggled into his mother’s lap as she weaved a story of quiet delight from the pages of the all time favourite book, Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

Ok, maybe the room wasn’t a great green room, but I have read Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown countless times and the rooms have been yellow and blue and even pale, pale green. That counts, right?

Well maybe not, but the quiet delight is one that I have shared with both of my children since they were infants and it is a story that I recommend strongly as both a mother and an Early Childhood Educator. It is a simple story of a little child (well rabbit actually) that is going to sleep. It sets up the mood with the opening, “in the great green room,” and it draws the reader in as you explore all the wonderful things that are in the room.

When you have discovered everything, the author takes you on the simple routine of a child putting themselves to sleep by saying goodnight to everything in the room including “the moon, the air and a bowl full of mush.”

The tone is a quiet one and I can often imagine my own children stalling at bedtime as they try to stay up for only a moment more as they bid goodnight to the cat and the dog and all the stuffed animals that are spread out across their bed.

As a parent, I love the language and the speed of the book and I have found that my children love it as well. They also love the artwork, illustrated by Clement Hurd, which shifts from black and white to wonderful color. The pictures are well done and add to the quiet mood Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown has produced.

This is definitely a must for any child’s library and I am sure that once you have read it, you will return to it night after night.

By Sirena Van Schaik