The illustrations by Elizabeth Sayles are beautiful throughout this book and I love that the story features three girls of different ethnicities without making it the focal point of the book. But my favorite thing about this story is the way that these girls are unashamedly loud and free to run and jump. Each of the girls imitates an animal. One growls like a bear, one swims through her evening bath like a whale, and one imagines that she is a sled dog running through the snow.
Our culture expects little girls to be quiet and cute while allowing little boys to run wild and free. Our daughters need more books where they are encouraged to be loud, to run, and to play. In the Night Garden and other stories like it should be frequent visitors for storytime in all of our homes.
Do you have a favorite book that encourages girls (or all children) to be wild and loud?
