The Bats Don't Have a Bedtime Book Review

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I like to read books. Well, at least I used to, before I became a mom. I can probably count the books I read last year on one hand. Scratch that. Maybe a single finger? We’re more about the kids book these days. Not that I mind a whole lot. Especially since Liam’s really been getting into reading lately. He loves hearing a good story and it’s fun to watch him flip through the pages and retell it in his own words. So we love a good book around here. Particularly when it includes a good lesson to learn and the leading characters are some of our favorite animals. We recently received a copy of Laurel Walther’s new book The Bats Don’t Have a Bedtime to review and I can’t wait to share my thoughts with you!

The Bats Don’t Have a Bedtime is a story about a little lion named Will. He has a hard time winding down from the excitement of the day and doesn’t want to go to sleep when it’s bedtime. Sound like any toddler you know? He points out to his mom that the bats are just coming out to play and he wants to stay up too. His parents, like any good ones would, explain the importance of getting a good night’s rest – especially because he has a big race coming up the next day. Of course, Will doesn’t listen and stays up most of the night. He finally falls asleep just as the sun comes up.

When morning comes, Will notices that he’s feeling a little bit off, but doesn’t know why. He doesn’t have any energy to compete well in his race and ends up coming in last. Will realizes that his parents were right and that rest is important for his body.

I really like the storyline of the book. This is a topic that’s still hard for me to grasp as an adult, crazy as it sounds. I’m a night-owl by nature with a seemingly never-ending to-do list. But Will’s mom and dad are right. Rest is so important for your body. And I’m trying so hard to teach Liam how to be kind to his. I love that this story helps to do that in a fun and memorable way. When Liam says he’s not tired at bedtime, we talk about the story again and how important it was for Will to get some sleep.

The illustrations by Emily Hercock are so colorful and cute. They definitely help keep Liam’s attention in the story and stay engaged with the characters.

I do wish that the book was a little bit shorter or condensed. There are 32 pages total, 19 of them with text. For an active 3-year-old like Liam, it’s hard for us to read through the entire book in one sitting.

Overall, though, we really love this book! I’m all about books that teach us something important that I can easily reference later. Because goodness knows, this threenager doesn’t always do a good job at listening to mommy and daddy.

You can add The Bats Don’t Have a Bedtime to your own library of kids books too! It’s available for purchase on Amazon here.