When Mama Comes Home Tonight (by Eileen Spinelli)

Don't all parents and toddlers wish bedtime went this smoothly! Although the rituals are romanticized -- devoid of tantrums or battles of wills -- children will love the tenderness and safety this story provides. The simple, flowing text encourages children, even those with limited language skills, to repeat rhyming words and peaceful passages. Child and parent model calm behaviors for readers to emulate.

Pastel watercolor and color-pencil illustrations set the mood of gentleness and serenity. They have an old-fashioned appeal, like the paintings of Mary Cassatt. There is sweetness to the story, and the illustrations will have parent and child returning time and again to this book for role modeling and comfort at the end of a hectic day.