The wind is calling. Hear it sweep
through our village, fast asleep.
Will you sail away with me?
You and I are salt and sea…
And so, bath time turns into a magical expedition. A grown-up and child embark on the voyage together, meeting mermaids in the sea, playing hide-and-seek in an enchanted forest, and soaring with the birds before sailing home to read and snuggle in for bedtime, which they know is just another adventure beginning. Through it all, they cherish the most important thing in both dreamland and the real world: being together.
“Bedtime preparations kick off a romp through the imagination. Hosford’s soothing first-person text, told from the perspective of the grown-up, combines with the comforting deep blues and greens of Jones’ digitally finished acrylic and watercolor illustrations for a natural bedtime read that’s also likely to be a popular gift among new parents. A soothing, poetic look at a common nighttime routine.”
-Kirkus Reviews
Writing Stars and Night
I continue to be preoccupied with the topic of steadfast love. Of course, there is no shortage of books on this topic. In my own writing, I have addressed steadfast love in Infinity and Me, Mama’s Belly and You’ll Always Be My Chickadee. The challenge is how one can bring something new to the genre both in one’s own writing, but also in the canon of ‘love you forever’ books. For this book, I wanted to enter the realm of fantasy, where an adult and child are called by the wind to leave their cozy home at bath time and embark on a magical adventure. I wanted to use rhyme to enhance the magical nature of the journey, and metaphor to address the bond between adult and child. On every spread, the adult reinforces her love for the child through a tagline related to the present action in their adventure: you and I are boat and sail/fork and spoon/ glow and flame, etc. Aided by the wind, they return home tired and happy, ready to resume their bedtime rituals. But I didn’t want to end the story there. Instead, I wanted them to embark on an even bigger adventure as they drift into dreamland together. The final illustration still takes my breath away when I flip to the last page, with the even bigger boat ascending into the night sky. Illustrator Richard Jones was able to take this story to the next level by depicting a loving bond between child and grown-up on every spread. His enchanting illustrations are also filled with all sorts of hidden treasures for children to discover. Even after reading the book a gazillion times, I am still discovering new things. My hope is that children and their grown-ups will find this story both adventurous and soothing, and that the message of steadfast love will be playful, varied, and reassuring.
Reviews:
Bedtime preparations kick off a romp through the imagination.
In a maritime village where “the wind is calling,” an unnamed brown-skinned adult and child begin their nightly regimen. While the little one bathes, the adult, holding a toy boat, asks, “Will you sail away with me?” As they embark on a journey “over lands unknown” and “restless waters,” Hosford’s verse employs a simple yet effective AABB rhyme scheme, each spread ending with the phrase “You and I are…” that compares the protagonists to something they recently explored: “salt and sea,” “egg and nest,” “stars and night.” Caregiver and child reinforce their bond as they play hide-and-seek in a colorful forest, scale mountains, and finally return home. As bathtime becomes bedtime, the child gently falls asleep, assured of the parent’s love and devotion. Hosford’s soothing first-person text, told from the perspective of the grown-up, combines with the comforting deep blues and greens of Jones’ digitally finished acrylic and watercolor illustrations for a natural bedtime read that’s also likely to be a popular gift among new parents. Observant readers will see the child’s toys making appearances throughout, adding another layer to a lovely reading experience. A soothing, poetic look at a common nighttime routine
-Kirkus Reviews