Playtime With Monster

Delightful, Great Ending, But Format Issues

This book is a delightful story about a little boy who hates getting ready for bed until his mother creates a game for him to play each night at bedtime. In this game, he leaves snacks for a friendly monster and chants a little rhyme to summon it so they can play before bed - the helicopter game, hide and seek, etc. After a little while each night, the monster tucks him into bed and tells him goodnight.

For those who are wondering, there's a bit at the end to explain the monster's existence. Not everything is quite as it seems, but I promise it adds to the story's cuteness factor. In fact, I was a little torn on whether I would want to recommend this for my young relatives, until I reached the end and realized it would be a great, little gift.

The art looks a smidge like it's emulating a Pixar/DreamWorks type style, but is overall adorable. The story itself is told well and - luckily for the sanity of anyone reading this every night to a child - does not use a rhyme scheme. The only complaint I have is that the spacing is cramped and that makes it slightly difficult to follow what's on each page. I rented the kindle version, so I'm not sure if these issues are present in the print version.