Weiss’s nighttime world is wonderfully alive, radiant with glimmering shades of dusk and the cool hues of night, where “nocturnal creatures [start] to sing,” from the softly croaking frogs to the cheery notes of songbirds to the delicate flutter of Luna moth wings. With whispering prose, Weiss reflects the gentle harmony of the natural world with the evening animals who come out to play just as kids wind down, suggesting a beautiful symbiosis between human cycles and those of the outdoors, where “the Firefly Lullaby soothes us to sleep.”
Readers will find this debut the perfect bedtime accompaniment, a tender nudge to “read favorite books” and let imaginations run wild while the night entertains with a striking symphony. The whimsical illustrations twinkle with muted lights and soft-edged shapes that echo dreamscapes, and Weiss’s moon is a bioluminescent orb that oversees the evening’s activities. Weiss closes with a glossary that covers book terms like “baritone” and “nocturnal,” as well as entertaining facts on the story’s featured animals (firefly groups are delightfully called “sparkles,” and Luna moths are seasonal nighttime visitors) and a link to the book’s MP3 Soundscape. Bedtime transforms into an ethereal encounter in Weiss’s assured hands.
Takeaway: Whimsical celebration of soothing bedtime routines.
Comparable Titles: Emmy Kastner’s While You’re Asleep, Faye Farhang Hutsell’s Sweet Dreams, Haystack Rock.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A-
Illustrations: A
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A
FIREFLY LULLABYwritten and illustrated by Karen Weiss ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 19, 2024 The sounds of night lull young listeners to sleep in this vibrant debut illustrated children’s book from author/illustrator Weiss. Evening approaches, and children put away their toys and get ready for bed. As they prepare for sleep, they see lights through their window—not just the moon and stars, “but sparkles of light, / glowing golden / and bright, / as fireflies flicker /and twirl in the night!” These aren’t the only nocturnal visitors: The poem’s narrator also describes luna moths, frogs, songbirds at night, crickets, and other humming insects. After reading storybooks and getting tucked into bed, the kidslisten to creature sounds—a lullaby that ushers them off to sleep. An author’s note describes this book as having started as an art project, and Weiss’ acrylic-on-canvas paintings are absolutely an eye-catching draw. Her stylized, full-color images give even realistic settings a magical, whimsical feel, whether they feature curvy houses with conical roofs, a tricycle that looks meant for fairies to ride, or an hourglass-shaped cat with a spiral tail looking out a nighttime window. Weiss makes great use of the musical concept, putting fireflies directly onto a musical staff on the front and end pages. In one starry two-page spread, musical notes float in the night sky, forming treble and bass clef symbols in a wispy mist. On the final page, notes dance across the grass and river, while trees seem to sway rhythmically in the background. The bold, bright colors depicted in the beginning pages’ sunset are soon replaced by pages dominated with blues and purples, but they never feel dreary; while the deeper hues offer a sleepy feel, it’s too dreamlike to ever be dull. The poetry flows beautifully, as well, its scansion as steady and calming as the lullaby it mimics. The soothing tempo seems perfectlydesigned for lap readers listening as an adult rocks them to the beat of the poem’s music. Some of the more challenging vocabulary words (nocturnal, symphony) are defined for independent readers in a short glossary.An enchanting debut that captures the magic of nighttime backyard music.
