Go to Sleep, Monty! by Kim Geyer

Go to Sleep, Monty! by Kim Geyer
Buy Go to Sleep, Monty! by Kim Geyer at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: For Sharing
Reviewer: Sam Tyler
Summary: Max wants a puppy and he gets one in the form of the boisterous Monty. Can Max learn to look after Monty in this fun book about responsibility, but also very naughty pups.
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 32	Date: June 2015
Publisher: Andersen Press
External links: Author's website
ISBN: 9781783441105
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For some children, it does not take them long to decide that they want a pet. This means that the next few months and years consist of them slowly breaking down their parents’ resistance until finally a pet enters the home. For some lucky adults this may take the form of a goldfish or a hamster, but for many it will be a dog. You may feel like you have only just managed to get your own child potty trained, but now you have to start all over again with a puppy.

Max is a little boy who wants a dog and his parents are happy for him to have one, as long as Max looks after it. Rather than choosing a Petite Pekingese or a Chic Chihuahua, Max goes for Monty instead, a beast of a puppy. During the day it is all fun and games, but once night falls there is a major problem, Monty won’t sleep. How will Max get this lumbering beast to enter Slumberland?

There is something instantly charming about a children’s book about a dog and author/illustrator Kim Geyer does a great job of tapping into this in Go to Sleep, Monty! The book is instantly appealing as Geyer’s illustrations are colourful, warm and inviting. Max himself has rosy red cheeks, whilst Monty is a bundle of slightly chaotic fun. The book could easily be read to the very small as the images alone will capture their attention – the stuff that Monty gets up to is instantly recognisable to anyone who has seen Grandad’s dog.

Alongside the lush images is a fun story about responsibility when owning a pet. Max is a conscientious young boy and does what is needed to look after his dog, including walking, feeding and even cleaning up after Monty’s messes. The moral of the story is that although you can do what you can, sometimes dogs will be naughty. As you read this with your child, you may just think that if you substitute Monty for your own child, the themes remain the same.

The story has a light feel to it that works well, but towards the end it drifts a little and the conclusion is a little startling – do you really want a child to roll up and sleep in a dog basket? Hopefully, you will tell your own child that this is not the best idea!

The book itself comes on quality paper over 32 pages and in hardback should last a very long time. The wonderful images showing a boy and his dog are heartening, so the fact that the story falls away a little is not a massive problem. This is an ideal pre-bedtime book for any 12 month to 4 year old who loves dogs.

More insomniac fun can be had with Sleepy or Not, Mr Croc? by Jo Lodge and Goodnight Already by Jory John and Benji Davies.

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You can read more book reviews or buy Go to Sleep, Monty! by Kim Geyer at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Go to Sleep, Monty! by Kim Geyer at Amazon.com.

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