The little tiger lay on his back in the tall grass. "Close your eyes, little tiger," said his mother, "and go to sleep."

But the little tiger is worried about what sleep might bring. His mother reassures him that once he closes his eyes, he will dream of magical places. And when he awakens, she will be right there, waiting for him.

Alternating between real-life scenes with the baby tiger and his mother and enchanted dream scenes of sleep's possibilities, Kate Banks's simple, comforting text and Georg Hallensleben's bright, colorful illustrations make this a charming bedtime story for small children.

A Junior Library Guild Selection Full-color pictures throughout

Amazon.com
A mother tiger wants her baby to go to sleep, but the little tiger resists. "'If I close my eyes,' he said, 'I can't see the sky.'" She assures him that he will not only see the sky when he sleeps, but will float among clouds and be cradled by the moon. Not in the least assured, the little tiger complains that if he closes his eyes, he will miss seeing the tree and the bird with blue feathers. With each concern, his mother consoles him with a comforting thought. If this gentle give-and-take were not calming enough for a bedtime story, Hallensleben's lovely dreamscapes (And If the Moon Could Talk) will surely do the trick. Double-page paintings of cloud animal shapes (with the little tiger cozying up with the moon), the "big mountains where the rain lives," and of mother tiger licking her baby are utterly hypnotic. Young children who are afraid to go to sleep will learn that "Dark is just the other side of light. It's what comes before dreams" and that mom is never very far away. (Ages 3 to 6) --Karin Snelson

About the Author
Kate Banks and Georg Hallensleben are the author and artist of And If the Moon Could Talk, winner of the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, The Night Worker, winner of the Charlotte Zolotow Award, and A Gift from the Sea. Ms. Banks lives in Menton, France, and Mr. Hallensleben lives in Paris, France.

Keywords: Close Your Eyes, Books, Kate Banks, Georg Hallensleben, Tigers, Fiction, Mother and child, Dreams, Sleep, Children's 4-8 - Picturebooks, Juvenile Fiction, Animals - Lions Tigers Leopards etc.