Winter is here and so are longer nights. I’ve gathered some wonderful books perfect to settle youngsters, ages two through five, down for the night. These books are all board books made for little toddler hands unless otherwise indicated.

The cover of You Are Not Sleepy! by Mark Teague, showcasing a pink pig lying on a pillow surrounded by toys, perfect for bedtime laughs.

You’re Not Sleepy!, by Mark Teague, features a cute pig that needs to go to sleep but seems to have continual interruptions. He feels it’s too bright, so he makes the room darker. Then the room is too dark and he opens the window, but this attracts annoying moths. He finally comes up with a simple and fun solution that youngsters will enjoy. The wonderful illustrations, by a favorite artist of mine, were painted with acrylics.

Good Night, Zodiac Animals, by Jiemei Lin, is a nice introduction to the lunar new year. There are twelve zodiac animals along with a pictogram on each open-page colorful spread. The tiny mouse and the strong lion both showcase their unique pictographic prowess along with a simple text of beauty and rhyme. The bright illustrations were done digitally. More lunar new year information can be found at the end.

Silly Lullaby, by Sandra Boynton, is a reissue that was first published in 1997. This rhyming tale shows some very funny ways to say goodnight. A daddy bear has his small cub sitting on his lap as he entices him to go to sleep. He sings “Go to sleep, my zoodle, my fibblety-fitsy foo. Go to sleep, sweet noodle. It’s time to say, Ah-choo.” This colorful read may not settle them down, as they will most probably be giggling.

Cover of Eli and the Uncles, showing a diverse group of eight uncles and a child, celebrating family bonds and humor through bedtime storytelling.

Eli and the Uncles, by Jehan Madhani and brightly illustrated with watercolor, acrylic and colored pencils by Rashin Kheiriyeh, is actually a clever and hilarious bedtime story. Eli has eight fun, adoring uncles who are unique in every way whom he gets to spend the day with. Every one of them sports a very distinctive and humorous beard that is intrinsic to their characteristics. But when it gets to be bedtime, the countdown as each uncle bids good night is equal, (if not better), to counting sheep. This book is a delight!

Bedtime Blitz, by Matthew Van Fleet, is a clever rhyming book with tabs along the way to enjoy the process of getting ready for bed. A group of animals are alerted that it’s time to get ready for bedtime. They brush their teeth, take a bath and put on their pajamas. The colorful illustrations show how happy and energetic these animals are as they approach bedtime. This book is a great way to encourage bedtime.

The enchanting cover of The Night Whale, featuring a child and grandparent stargazing with a whale swimming in the night sky.

The Night Whale, by Bryher Mackenzie and gorgeously illustrated using mixed media by Gillian Eilidh O’Mara, is a story of the magic of nighttime and the relationship of grandparent and child. In this picture book, good for all ages, Nana tells her granddaughter of the wonders of the sky. She tells of a majestic story of the Night Whale swimming among the stars. The beautiful story matches the glorious pictures on every full-page spread. We were stargazers for so long. Now we are explorers. Painters of the night sky. The ending assures young readers that goodnight doesn’t mean forever.

More 5-Minute Peppa Stories (Peppa Pig), published by Scholastic, has six stories that are short making this book perfect for a quick read at end the day. Some of the stories include: Peppa Loves to Bake, Peppa Goes to the Library and Peppa is Kind. The cover is padded and many of the brightly colored illustrations are a full open-page spread.

Alphonse, You’re Ruining the Show!, by Daisy Hurst, is a picture book for youngsters ages three to six. Two siblings and little monsters, Natalie and Alphonse, are going to sleep over at Granny’s house where they decide to put on a play. Things start to fall apart when Alphonse wants to go home. But Granny knows how to makes everything better so that their sleepover is successful. The colors on every page are vibrant and made by screen-printing.

The cover of Wake Up, Moon! by Lita Judge, featuring a joyful bear and squirrel exploring a snowy night under a glowing moon.

Wake Up, Moon!, by Lita Judge, is another picture book with elaborate and beautiful full-spread illustrations made with watercolor and pencil. A small squirrel desires to go play in the newly fallen snow even though it’s now night. As he glides and slides on the snow, he encourages his friends Bear, Owl and Fox to join him. The rhyming text throughout as well as Squirrel asking animals and more to repeatedly Wake up. However, the night becomes longer than Squirrel and friends can manage, and yawns start to form and eventually turn to sleep.