Bedtime for Monsters (review)

What if there are really monsters? And what if one of those monsters is "thinking about you in an eating-you-up kind of way" and thus proceeds dauntlessly and hungrily through all kinds of obstacles? That's the premise of this silly-scary picture book that draws out the suspense of the oncoming monster with taunting, haunting sound effects ("Might you also hear a creak creak creak as he starts to climb the stairs?"), only to end in a real horror: "a disgustingly sloppy goodnight kiss!" Like LaRochelle's It's a Tiger, reviewed above, this is a tale that turns threat into playfulness, and Vere carefully balances the two elements. The details of the monster's anticipation offer excellent opportunities for a readaloud star turn, and the final kissing attack will be a giggly treat for lapsitting youngsters. Digital planes of saturated color, often in foreboding tones, gain definition from soft, shaggy pencil lines in the comic artwork. The star of the show is indisputably the traveling monster, who looks rather like a bilious green version of the Abominable Snowman from Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer, enhanced by even bigger, poppier eyes, some Martian-esque ears, and spanking hot-pink accents in horns and toenails. The art capably and repeatedly undercuts the menace, with the monster dopily toddling off on a wee red bicycle (complete with ringing bell) as the text threatens that "he's coming to find you." While this is probably a little too exciting to be a genuine bedtime book, it's an enjoyable goofy outing that will be widely enjoyed by kids and their monstrous, kissy grownups.