It’s nighttime, but one little tiger isn’t ready to go to sleep. “ 'If I close my eyes,’ he said, 'I can’t see the sky.’ ” Or the tree, or the bird with the blue feathers. And the dark is scary. Like any small child, the little tiger is full of reasons for not going to sleep. But his mother leads him to an understanding of the endless possibilities that his own imagination can create in the dark. She is also full of love and reassurance in this superb bedtime (or anytime) story. “Dark is just the other side of light,” she tells him. “I will be here. So close your eyes, little tiger.” Kate Banks is a writer with a keen understanding of the emotional landscape of small children, and a gift for language. Like her other books illustrated by Georg Hallensleben, here her beautiful words are paired with vivid yet soothing images, creating a perfectly balanced, extraordinarily comforting picture book. Highly Commended, 2003 Charlotte Zolotow Award (Ages 2-4)

A little tiger takes an imaginative journey in Close Your Eyes, a New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year and a Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

The little tiger lay on his back in the tall grass.
"Close your eyes, little tiger," said his mother, "and go to sleep."

But the little tiger is worried about what sleep might bring.
His mother reassures him that once he closes his eyes, he will dream of magical places. And when he awakens, she will be right there, waiting for him.

Alternating between real-life scenes with the baby tiger and his mother and enchanted dream scenes of sleep's possibilities, Kate Banks's simple, comforting text and Georg Hallensleben's bright, colorful illustrations make this a charming bedtime story for small children.