The King Who Wouldn't Sleep

February 13, 2012
It’s a treat to come across an original fairy tale that generates surprise not by irony or irreverence, but through sheer narrative ingenuity. Debut author Singleton does just that—her clever story wouldn’t be out of place in a Grimm’s collection. The eponymous king is an
insomniac by choice: he “loved his only daughter so much that he had resolved to watch over her every day and every night, until he could find her the perfect prince.” Determined to get some face-time alone with the princess, suitors try to lull or even drug the king to sleep. But in the classic tradition, it takes a humble but quick-thinking young farmer to set in motion an elaborate con that results in the king having to count sheep. “And they slept peacefully ever after.” Swain’s (The Perfect Baby) innocuous cartooning puts a bit of a damper on Singleton’s brisk prose and inventiveness. While there’s plenty of variety in the compositions, the characterizations are flat: the princess is a cipher, and the farmer exudes only the barest hint of slyness. Ages 4–9.

April 1, 2012

PreS-Gr 2-The king loves his beautiful daughter very much, and he resolves to watch over her day and night until he finds a suitable husband for her. He interviews many crowned heads, to no avail. The princes realize that if they could make the king fall asleep, they could talk to the princess. They try everything, but he is on to them. Then a clever, persistent farmer arrives and finally tricks the king into counting sheep. The farmer and princess marry and everyone sleeps peacefully ever after. The humorous watercolor and pencil cartoon illustrations are large and bright, and feature expressive, goggle-eyed characters. While the plot, resembling many folktales, has been done before, the way the farmer tricks the king is original, and children will enjoy it.-Margaret R. Tassia, Millersville University, PA

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2012
Preschool-G Singleton's humorous story elegantly combines a fractured fairy tale with counting and weekday timekeeping. The titular king is so concerned about finding the best husband for his daughter that he gets no rest while sending away imperfect suitor after imperfect suitor. A local farmer, however, finds just the right way to trick him into napping in an elaborate ruse involving days of the week, intentionally garbled math, and the counting of 100 sheep. With the king asleep, the farmer has the opportunity to court the princess, who was perfectly happy to have him as a suitor. Swain's large, watercolor cartoons both illustrate and expand the multiracialand multispeciescast of the story, giving young audiences lots of opportunity to compare the various tall, short, fat, and thin suitors. The upbeat narration matches the art in mood, and the giggling princess suggests that she sees the joke coming maybe even before first-time readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)