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Comment by DamnInteresting | Hacker News Reader

As an author, voice actor, and the dad of a three-year-old, there is something about "Goodnight Moon" that is a pleasure to read aloud. The pacing is excellent, the syllables deftly selected. My favorite passage is at the end: "Goodnight stars, goodnight air, goodnight noises everywhere." There is something satisfying in the cadence of the words. It's difficult to articulate why this is.

Similarly satisfying kids' books: "Tomorrow Most Likely", and "All the World."

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Her most satisfying book to read out loud is "The Little Island". If you liked "Goodnight Moon" then you'll find this to be an absolute treat. It's also a somewhat odd story, but it's the book that I enjoyed reading to my son the most.

BTW, the book that I disliked reading the most was "The Little Engine That Could". It felt jarring to read -- like I never could quite catch my breath or my rhythm.

Thanks for the tip! I shall seek it out.

“Blue Hat, Green Hat” has been a hit with my kids when they were around 2-3.

Every time I would say ‘Oops’ while they were on my lap, I would jump my knee up a bit and they would laugh hysterically.

I have not read this book, but the line you reference seems like fairly standard poetry to me. Is that what it reminds you of? Or something else altogether?

That line feels like an Edgar Allen Poe or Beethoven cadence. It goes up and down in perfect step. Just reading it I feel like I'm in motion.

Regarding Poe, specifically "The Bells", since many associate him solely with psychological horror or early mysteries and this is a departure from that:

https://poets.org/poem/bells

The illustrations by Clement Hurd are delightful too. I particularly enjoy the small elements of continuity — the mouse that makes repeated appearances, the book sitting on the nightstand, and the sense of passing time conveyed by the clocks and the moon in the window.

In terms of continuity I'm always a little surprised that the mittens on the drying rack are sometimes alone, and sometimes with socks/similar.

Also, the painting of bears sitting on chairs itself has a painting of the cow jumping over the moon.

My favorite thing to do with the kids while reading the book was to have them find the mouse on each page. Each time I read the book I discovered something else interesting--even after dozens of readings. I do wonder how many of those elements were devised by the author versus the illustrator. Bravo to both of them.

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