I Just Want to Say Good Night by Rachel Isadora

I Just Want to Say Good Night Reviews

• 
  Kathryn

  So sweet! I think most children can relate to having just one more little “must do” excuse for delaying going to bed and I love that Lala’s involve saying good night to the animals.
• 
  Abigail

  A young African girl named Lala, living with her family in a village on the veld, delays her bedtime for as long as she can, insisting that she must say goodnight to a variety of animals and objects. Having put off going to sleep for as long as possible, she finally settles in, saying goodnight to her book - the much-loved classic,
  Goodnight Moon.
  
  I found I Just Want to Say Good Night quite charming, both for its presentation of that classic early childhood experience - delaying bedtime - and for the delightful illustrations it contains. I also appreciated author/illustrator Rachel Isadora's tribute to the Margaret Wise Brown classic,
  Goodnight Moon. All that said, I did wonder a bit at her decision to set her story in a generic "Africa," rather than in a specific country. It's true that the "veld" is to be found in the southern part of the continent, but there a number of countries which contain this ecosystem - why not choose one? Leaving that issue aside, I was pleased with this sweet story of a little African girl and her bedtime rituals. Recommended to anyone looking for goodnight books with an African cultural setting, or featuring black characters.
• 
  Donovan

  I don’t see the point of this book, it’s purely unimaginative. A girl walks around a village saying “goodnight” to one animal after another—“goodnight to the fish,” “good night to the cat”—but language is repeated not rhythmically but lazily, obnoxiously. Children’s books are like poems, every word carries incredible weight. The other thing with language—a children’s book does not need dialog tags with every single line of dialog, because the book ends up having a chorus of “he says,” “she says.” There are enough ‘good night’ books that it needs to be something really special, ex. Goodnight Moon.
• 
  Samantha Osborne

  Cute read
• 
  KC

  Fantastic tale of a young African girl who wants to say goodnight to "everyone" in her village.
• 
  N

  If
  Go the Fuck to Sleep was really tender and adorable. Parents will both cringe with recognition and smile simultaneously.
  
  That cameo ending!
• 
  Alex Baugh

  When her father comes home after a day of fishing, he tell Lala that it's time for bed. But Lala's isn't ready to go to sleep quite yet. Her excuse for bedtime procrastination? Saying goodnight to every animal she can find in her small village, including all the little ants crawling along the ground. In the end, she finally gets into bed with a good book she wants to bid good night to - none other than Margaret Wise Brown's Goodnight Moon. Isadora's bright oil and ink illustrations are richly textured and appear to set this story in the African plains, although that isn't mentioned. This is a nice bedtime story, but be prepared for young readers to imitate the refrain Lala tells her parents: "I just want to say good night to..."
• 
  Lauren Paletta

  Not a fan. This is telling my child that its okay to ignore what his mommy and daddy say. Bedtime is already hard with a toddler, I don't need to read him a book that tells him "it's okay not to listen, just do whatever you want". Others may have no issue with the book or got a different message, but it was just not for us.
• 
  Rachel

  So lovely, the rich reds, oranges, and yellows capture the twilight then morph into deep blues, love how the chapter interacts with the world around her, she is spunky, makes a good bedtime story and pays homage to good night moon as well.
• 
  Mary Ann

  I'm concerned about the cultural appropriation of Africa, especially with the ending bringing in Goodnight Moon instead of an African lullaby.
• 
  Emily Scheinman

  I love Rachel Isadora's illustrations
• 
  Lacey Louwagie

  I was so charmed by an illustration from this book in the Hornbook magazine that I just had to see the whole thing.
  
  The storyline is typical -- little girl doesn't want to go to bed, so she delays it by listing all the things she has to say goodnight to before she goes to sleep. The illustrations did not disappoint. Lala is adorable, the African scenery is stunning, and the details had me lingering on each page -- a cat peeking out from behind a hut there, mother cradling a younger baby in her arms as she tries to get Lala in bed, etc. And since I had it in the house, I decided to read it aloud to my baby (still in utero), so it also holds the distinction of being the book for baby's first storytime!
• 
  Jordan Lilja

  I loved reading this book! It takes place on an African veld, where the people live in a village. The illustrations were incredible and provided so much detail in the colors, the village, and in each and every character. This book had repetition and mentioned a lot of different animals.
• 
  Amy!

  So lovely and sweet
• 
  Steph

  Super cute little girl who just wants to say "good night" to the cat, the dog, the chickens, the goat, the .... everything. But when she goes to bed, she needs to say good night to her book: Good Night, Moon.
  Wonderful illustrations and charming character.
  
  And yet... why am I bothered by the vision of an African girl in a thatch hut. I live here in Africa, and while there are villages with thatch huts, most West Africans live in apartments made from concrete, rebar, with plumbing, gas, electric, and ac.
  
  Hmmm.... maybe the kids will like this one more than I do.
• 
  Janet

  A picture book set on the plains of Africa proves that children in all cultures want to prolong their bedtimes. The illustrations are lovely depicting the beautiful light just prior to the sun disappearing below the horizon and then the darkness of the night in several more illustrations. Lovely title.
  
  Yes,this is a lovely title and while not all picture books transfer into suitable board books this title I like even better in board book format. Think the board book format allows for a more meaningful interaction between the adult reader and the preschool child. August 2022.
• 
  Lynn Schlatter

  I had a small problem with this story: because I'm a crochety old lady with no children, I'm pretty sure I would've been dragging Lala into the house by the time we got to the fourth "I just want to say good night to--" This, in turn, makes me reluctant to read this book to a child for fear they'd think I was endorsing this recalcitrant behavior. The art is beautiful, though, so if you're not of a cynical bent you'll probably enjoy this book more than I did.
• 
  Natalie

  Set in Africa, a young girl is told to go to bed by her mom, but she goes down a list of all the things she wants to say good night to.
  
  I enjoyed the animals and illustrations of the book very much. However, I did find it a little bothersome that the girl continues to disobey her mother to say goodnight to everything she wants. At the end, she still doesn't go to sleep but ends up reading instead.
• 
  Jillian Heise

  Sweet story that would make a great bedtime read. The illustrations are soft, gorgeous, and evocative of the African setting. I think we all know a Lala in our lives, and I adored her bedtime routine & stalling tactics. :) As an homage to a classic good night story, it has an added layer.
• 
  Susan

  An innocent, loving African girl says good night to the fish, to the bird, to the goat. She goes on in the African savanna to say good night to the monkey, the ants, and the rock. She says good night to any and all things she can find to avoid going to bed. When she gets into bed, she says good night to her book. When she looks out her window at the full moon, she says, “Good night, moon!”, while holding her book, Good Night Moon.
  
  Illustrated in clear, bright oils with black ink, the artist/author captures perfectly the innocence of a young girl who goes through her good-night ritual to make her good day even better. The brilliant, moving illustrations are startling, warm and comforting all at once and invite the reader to “just look at the pictures.” A very nurturing bedtime story.
• 
  Lynn

  I love the universal concept of children finding ways to postpone the inevitable bedtime, and this is adorable, but would a child living on the African veld have access to a copy of "Goodnight Moon'? I realize it has been translated into a number of languages, so I wonder if any of those languages are spoken by people living in that part of southern Africa. I also wonder if this would be the cultural norm in that area, or if there would be another bedtime routine.
  Other than that, this is a great story with colorful illustrations showing the veld, the expressions of the young girl, and a patient but firm mother.
• 
  Linda

  The sweetest goodnight book, will make a perfect book for a first or second birthday. Young Lala is putting off her bedtime by saying good night to the usual things like her cat, the fish her papa caught, the goat. She gets quite creative as she tries to gain a little more time before bed and also says good night to the chickens, the little ants, her dog. Finally, into bed, a surprise that I won't give away. The full-page illustrations show evening colors, first bright, slowly darkening. It's lovely!
• 
  Nicola

  Miss 3 and I like to explore different books at the library and try to get different ones out every week or so; it's fun for both of us to have the variety and to look at a mix of new & favourite authors.
  
  This was one of the books that I chose. The pictures are beautiful and the simple idea of the story should be a familiar one for many parents - where their young one just keeps finding excuses not to go to bed. I love her appeal that she still needs to say good night to the rock! The tie in with Good Night Moon is also lovely.
• 
  Jeniece Goellner

  While reading this picture book, all I could think was "I can completely see this being my daughter one day". As my little toddler starts to get more and more opinions of her own, I can easily see her delaying bedtimes by needing to say good night to everyone and anything around her. But that's the charm of the book. A sweet girl that doesn't want to go to bed, showing love to everything around her. The illustrations are rich in color and feeling. And there's a nice little surprise at the end of the book for those who love classic picture book.
• 
  Tami

  I Just Want To Say Good Night by Rachel Isadora ranks among my favorite bedtime stories for children. If I still had little ones--preschool, early elementary--I would DEFINITELY be purchasing this title for our home library. Sweet, gentle, and soothing it exemplifies the perfect bedtime read in that: (1) it is structured around Lala's stalling tactic of saying 'Good Night' to several animals to avoid going to bed; and (2) this structure is repetitive, calm and quietly amusing.
  
  Set in an African village the fully rendered landscapes and characters are drawn in browns, oranges and yellows, accented with red and green details. This book is so cozy in text and illustration it begs for a nice bedtime snuggle!
  
  I don't find as many of these types of ideal bedtime routine books reflecting children of color as main characters as I would like. Rachel Isadora is a one of my go-to authors for diversity in picture books, This is a great one to pick up and share with your kids at the end of the day, or as a lead-in to naptime.
• 
  Kirsten

  I loved this one. Lala, a toddler living on the African plains, says good night to many different daily objects and animals in an attempt to stall going to sleep -- including saying good night to her own copy of "Good Night, Moon." The story is universal, even as the illustrations root it in a somewhat specific time and place.
  
  Notes on representation: Lala and her family are all black. I don't know enough about the setting to determine if the representation of village life is accurate.
• 
  Sandy Brehl

  This truly captures the universal truth... a child's bedtime is determined by the child, not the parent. Little Lala has more than enough reasons to delay, taking time to say goodnight to all creatures, great and small, including a rock! The repetition is very effective. The gorgeous illustrations, patterns, humor, and gentle storytelling will make this a much-loved book for children from many backgrounds.
• 
  Peacegal

  Every kid knows the experience of trying to delay bedtime by just a few more minutes. This story, set in an African village, shows that this is a universal pursuit of children everywhere!
  
  Veg*n families note: The father brings home a fish he has caught at the end of the day. The story begins when the child insists upon saying "goodnight" to the fish's body, which, coming from a veg*n perspective, is both sweet and sad.