Penelope and the Monsters

Ellie Contursi is a children’s librarian at the London Public Library.

It’s bedtime, that special time of night when you snuggle down, close
your eyes, and drift off to dreamland. But not Penelope. She sees
monsters in her bedroom closet, in her dresser drawers, and under her
bed. Never in a “million, trillion, gazillion years” is she going to
sleep, she tells her father. Naturally each time she spots a gnome,
troll, or giant she calls for him, but the culprits hide and Dad can’t
spot a thing. Penelope, fed up, challenges the creatures to come out and
scare her once and for all. When they finally do, Penelope is unafraid.
Disappointed, the monsters leave her room without even saying goodbye.
Penelope, now satisfied, snuggles down for a good night’s sleep. Dad,
however, has a problem. Guess who’s hiding in his room?

Radford takes a lighthearted approach to this familiar, scary event in
a child’s life. Readers can’t help but giggle at Penelope’s facial
expressions as well as those of her faithful dog, who stays with her at
all times. Tripp’s expressive cartoonlike illustrations wonderfully
capture Penelope’s fear, stubbornness, and bravery. This delightful
picture book would be an excellent read-aloud story for little ones who
have bedtime anxiety. Highly recommended.