Baby, Sleepy Baby

Lyrical and full of love, this gentle picture book—based on a song that Atinuke’s father sang to her in Nigeria—is the perfect bedtime lullaby.

Baby, sleepy baby, I’ll sing down the stars
till they dance right into your room.

It’s bedtime for a drowsy little one, and the whole family takes turns to cuddle and sing this sleepy baby to bed. One by one the baby’s sister, grandmother, father, and mother call on the winds, the clouds, the stars, and the moon to sail and rock and delight their little one until dreams take over. With soothing language and deep, moonlit colors, author Atinuke and illustrator Angela Brooksbank reunite to evoke the warmth and tenderness of wrapping a child in nighttime’s embrace, as they celebrate the moments families share with their sleepy babies at bedtime.

Atinuke was born in Nigeria and spent her childhood in both Africa and the United Kingdom. She is the author of the Anna Hibiscus series and Africa, Amazing Africa, illustrated by Mouni Feddag; Too Small Tola, illustrated by Onyinye Iwu; and Baby Goes to Market, B Is for Baby, and Catch That Chicken!, all illustrated by Angela Brooksbank. Atinuke lives in Wales.


Angela Brooksbank, a former designer and art director in children’s book publishing, is the illustrator of B Is for Baby, Baby Goes to Market, and Catch That Chicken!, all by Atinuke. She lives in London.