Bedtime Is Canceled by Cece Meng (review)
Buy Issue for $25 at JHUP- Bedtime Is Canceled by Cece Meng
When Maggie and her brother write a note saying, “Bedtime is canceled” to avoid going to sleep, a gust of wind carries the note to the desk of a newspaperman, and the notice makes the headlines of the next day’s paper. Texts and emails go flying as people pass the message on and an exciting all-nighter of activity follows, much to the dismay of parents everywhere. The repercussions—sleepy parents mess up meals and tired teachers dismiss students late—prompt Maggie and her brother to send a new note directly to the newspaper: “Bedtime is not canceled!” Once again the news travels fast and everyone goes happily to bed—well, “almost everybody.” The closing page shows Maggie and her brother penning a new missive: “Cleaning up bedrooms is not allowed!” This is straight-up child-centered wish fulfillment, [End Page 304] and primary-graders will chortle not only at the concept of putting one over on the gullible adults but also at the humorous results; the principal at Maggie’s school, for example, is so shocked at the news that “she poured her morning coffee into her purse, combed her hair with her toothbrush, and dried her face with her calico cat.” Meng’s writing is clear, direct, and funny, and Neyret’s digitally created illustrations have an appropriately comic and cartoonish tone, with towheaded Maggie and her brother giving each other sly smiles while goggle-eyed adults react to the news or sleepily walk around with their pants on backward. While this might not be a suggestion you want to plant during actual bedtime reading, the book may be entertaining as a bedtime-themed storytime selection.
