How does sleep come?

"Grandma, I don't know how to sleep." - CJ, last night

Thus says the kiddo. And that statement intrigued me. Grandma had to pull him out of class the day before and take him to a doctor due to a stomach ache. Whatever medication the doctor gave him, he slept the rest of the day and that might well be the reason why that night he didn't know how to sleep anymore. 

So when I checked my Shelf Awareness newsletter and found "How Does Sleep Come?" I thought I would enter the link that invites possible readers and buyers of the book to win a free ARC (Advance Reading Copy). I like what I saw although the fill-in-the-gaps form looks like the ARC is only for US residents.   Nevertheless it sounds opportune to my little guy's sleeping predicament and I am happy to share with you some info of this lovely, new bedtime classic.

It is a picture book debut of Jeanne Blackmore, a granddaughter of Roger Duvoisin whose tradition of creating beautiful books for children is well-known among readers, reviewers, lovers of children's books. Notice how Blackmore writes simply but poetically which makes How Does Sleep Come an ideal sleepy time tale:

“How does sleep come?” Jacob asked his Mama as he climbed into bed. Jacob’s Mama tucked the covers all around Jacob just so, and then she told him. “Sleep comes quietly. Like a snowfall that blankets a meadow on a dark starry night, and lays down a soft white canvas for rabbits to leave footprints.”

Jacob closed his eyes.
And the snow fell.
And the fog rolled in.
And the clouds drifted.
And the cat purred.
And quietly, silently, softly, peacefully, gentlyJacob fell asleep

If you might be interested in the ARC go to this link. The book is coming September 2012 from Sourcebooks Jabberwocky.

Photo Source: http://books.sourcebooks.com/how-does-sleep-come-arc-giveaway/

Books on fire

In this post: Booking Through & Third Sentence

Have you ever read a random book left in a waiting room or on a park bench, etc., and did you like it?

Often I wonder when will I experience this. I mean finding a book left somewhere which happens to be something I would like to read. Yesterday I browsed the latest arrivals at Kinokuniya. By the time I noticed that I have been standing by the shelves for almost an hour on 3-inch heels, I was tired and sat on a bench where I found some YA fiction left by the inventory staff. I read parts of the first chapter, but aware that the book had to be accounted for in only a few minutes, I put it back on the bench and went to discover a very attractive spot - the Charles Dickens Bicentennial Anniversary collection. Ah... party! Now if i found one of those left on a park bench, I would warm that bench.

*More bookish answers at Booking Through Thursday

Book: The Wise Woman by Philippa Gregory

3rd sentence: "The walls were orange and scarlet, with the bobbing light of reflected flames, and I could hear yells of angry, rioting men."

Thoughts: It's like a scene in a movie, or that night when I and my roommates were awakened to be told that the administration building was on fire, a memory one could not easily forget. I remember feeling so worried and terrified for the nearby library. The fire was speeding to its direction. Even now nineteen years later, I could hear the crackling flames and see students running here and there. Much like this opening scene in Gregory's The Wise Woman, I relate with the main character as she woke up in chaos. She in an abbey, I in a boarding college dormitory on a hill.


*Proud Book Nerd hosts Third Sentence Thursday