Inside the book

From morning to night

The book follows the clock. Each animal gets two pages: first where it lives, then how it really sleeps. The pages grow darker as the night grows deeper.

A small gray owl sleeps in the round hole of the oak, its eyes closed and its feathers soft, two little feather tufts on top of its head. — SunriseThe owl sleeps all day long.

Seen from above, a red fox sleeps curled into a ball in the snow at the foot of a birch, its big bushy tail laid over its nose and paws, its tracks leading to its bed. — Early morningA red ball in the snow. It is the fox!

Lions rest in the shade of the acacia; the nearest lioness lies on her back with her paws up in the air, two spotted cubs sleep curled against another lioness, and the big male with his mane rests at the edge of the shade. — NoonThe lions rest close together.

Seen from above, sea otters float on their backs in the brown seaweed, eyes closed, paws on their tummies; in the middle, a mother holds a tiny pup on her chest. — AfternoonThe otters snooze on the waves.

Flamingos sleep on one long leg, the other leg tucked up and their bills tucked in their feathers; in the middle, a young gray-brown flamingo sleeps the same way beside a pink one. — Late afternoonThe flamingos rest on one leg. Just one!

Inside the hen house, a mother hen sits in the straw with her chicks tucked under her, two little heads peeking out; behind her, hens sit fluffed up on a wooden perch and one hops up. — SunsetHop! The hens jump up on the perch.

At night on the savanna, a baby giraffe lies in front with its neck up; behind it, a big giraffe lies with its long neck curved back, its head resting on its body. — Starry nightThe giraffe folds its legs. Its long neck curls back.

A mother elephant sleeps standing up under the moon, her long trunk hanging down to the ground, her little calf asleep lying on its side beside her feet. — Very, very lateThe big elephant sleeps standing up. The little one sleeps close by.

Eight of the fourteen sleepers, with the words from their page.

How to read it together

One gentle question on every page

Every page asks one question that points at the picture. Your toddler looks, points and answers, and a new word comes along. That back-and-forth, called dialogic reading, encourages early vocabulary.

Golden sunrise in an old oak forest; a small owl flies home to a round hole in a big tree trunk, its wings open, a little nuthatch climbs down the bark below, and two small birds perch on a branch, one of them singing. — Page 3Good morning, sun! The birds go tweet, tweet.
**Ask:** Can you find the round hole in the tree trunk?
**Your toddler:** There, in the trunk!

The front cover of The Sleepy Animals, a Tella Terra picture book

The last one to fall asleep is your little one

The Sleepy Animals is a first words bedtime book for ages 1 to 3: fourteen animals from the owl to the elephant, one gentle question on every page, and inside the back, simple tips for a calm bedtime routine.

The Sleepy AnimalsEnglish, paperback Get it on Amazon

The Sleepy Animals / Les animaux endormisEnglish-French bilingual, Kindle Get it on Amazon

The Sleepy Animals / Los animales dormilonesEnglish-Spanish bilingualComing soon

Paperback $9.99 · bilingual Kindle $2.99. Each bilingual edition carries both languages on every page. The English-French paperback is on the way, and the English-Spanish edition is coming soon.

The front cover of The Pets, a Tella Terra picture book

New to Tella Terra? Meet The Pets

Fourteen pets to meet one at a time, free songs to sing along, and 3 free coloring pages to print.

Visit The Pets →

The Sleepy Animals

Out now on Amazon

From morning to night

One gentle question on every page

Every fact checked

Realistic, not cartoonish

A calm way to end the day

The last one to fall asleep is your little one

New to Tella Terra? Meet The Pets

Hear about the next little world

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