Max's Bedtime [Board book]

Rosemary Wells (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 1 and up | Series: Max and Ruby

Max's rubber elephant is lost. Ruby tosses him her bear, but Max still can't sleep. So many toys get piled on his bed that he falls off -- and there's the elephant! Good night!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSAMax is back, or at least retooled for the 21st century. Max's Ride and Max's Toys first appeared in 1979, while Max's Bath and Max's Bedtime both have a 1985 copyright. The texts for the most part read the same. The typeface has been changed from sans serif to serif. In Max's Ride, the concept words are now designed to reflect their meaning. So "down" now moves down the page and "under" dips under the line of text. Max's errant baby carriage hits a bump rather than a clothes basket. As for the illustrations, those bouncing baby bunny buns seem to have slipped south. Max is more of a dumpy pyramid shape with enormous feet and a softer contour line. The books are a bit larger and the color palette a tad lighter. Some of the facial expressions seem to give a different emotional emphasis. Purists may feel even Wells can't do better than the originals and shouldn't try. Still, more Max is better than less and Wells's special brand of deadpan humor is always welcome.AJudith Gloyer, Milwaukee Public Library
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 1 and up
  
• Board book: 12 pages
• Publisher: Dial (April 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803722672
• ISBN-13: 978-0803722675
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 6.8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,124,361 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in New York City, Rosemary Wells grew up in a house "filled with books, dogs, and nineteenth-century music." Her childhood years were spent between her parents' home near Red Bank, New Jersey, and her grandmother's rambling stucco house on the Jersey Shore. Most of her sentimental memories, both good and bad, stem from that place and time. Her mother was a dancer in the Russian Ballet, and her father a playwright and actor. Mrs. Wells says, "Both my parents flooded me with books and stories. My grandmother took me on special trips to the theater and museums in New York. "Rosemary Wells's career as an author and illustrator spans more than 30 years and 60 books. She has won numerous awards, and has given readers such unforgettable characters as Max and Ruby, Noisy Nora, and Yoko. She has also given Mother Goose new life in two enormous, definitive editions, published by Candlewick. Wells wrote and illustrated Unfortunately Harriet, her first book with Dial, in 1972. One year later she wrote the popular Noisy Nora. "The children and our home life have inspired, in part, many of my books. Our West Highland white terrier, Angus, had the shape and expressions to become Benjamin and Tulip, Timothy, and all the other animals I have made up for my stories." Her daughters Victoria and Beezoo were constant inspirations, especially for the now famous "Max" board book series. "Simple incidents from childhood are universal," Wells says. "The dynamics between older and younger siblings are common to all families."But not all of Wells' ideas come from within the family circle. Many times when speaking, Mrs. Wells is asked where her ideas come from. She usually answers, "It's a writer's job to have ideas." Sometimes an idea comes from something she reads or hears about, as in the case of her recent book, Mary on Horseback, a story based on the life of Mary Breckenridge, who founded the Frontier Nursing Service. Timothy Goes to School was based on an incident in which her daughter was teased for wearing the wrong clothes to a Christmas concert. Her dogs, west highland terriers, Lucy and Snowy, work their way into her drawings in expression and body position. She admits, "I put into my books all of the things I remember. I am an accomplished eavesdropper in restaurants, trains, and gatherings of any kind. These remembrances are jumbled up and changed because fiction is always more palatable than truth. Memories become more true as they are honed and whittled into characters and stories."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We love Max!, November 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Max's Bedtime (Board book)

My toddler and I love the Max books. Max's Bedtime is one of her favorites - at 18 months old she was able to find the missing "red rubber elephant" that Max cannot sleep without! Great for little kids, fun for grown-ups too.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Much Substance, December 23, 2009

By 

TJW (New York) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Max's Bedtime (Max & Ruby) (Board book)

My children found Max and Ruby through the television programme rather than the book. Given that they love Max and Ruby and love books I thought this was a no-brainer. I was therefore very disappointed in the amount of substance to this book. It is very much a board book with very little narrative. I am sure that it would be great for very young children but at 2.5 years there is not enough to keep their interest.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars This is a Board Book Not a Hardcover, March 4, 2004

By 

Deborah Conner (Plano, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Max's Bedtime (Board book)

I was very disappointed in the description of this book provided by Amazon. It is touted as a Hardcover Book on the website, but when it arrived, it was a board book. My daugher loves Ruby & Max, but I try to get the hardcover editions as they are a little meatier. This one is below her level.