Peace at Last - Jill Murphy

Advantages: Great story and illustrations
Disadvantages: None

...who enjoy this series. Peace At Last, however is 'unisex' in the sense that it is enjoyed by the girls and boys I read it to. ********************************************************************** The Story ********************************************************************* It begins at bedtime. Mr & Mrs Bear along with Baby Bear all go up to bed. Mrs Bear went straight to sleep (if only I was like that!) but Mr Bear couldn't sleep and found ...
...the living room for some peace and quiet. But the tick-tock of the cuckoo clock irritates him so he tries the kitchen, where guess what, there's a dripping tap and the hum of the fridge. The garden is no better because of the different sounds of the animals. The car is cold and uncomfortable but he was so tired he just begins to drift off to sleep when the sun begins to come up and the birds start their early morning call. So exasperated he goes ... Read review

Advantages: Superb story for children, Beautiful illustrations, great bedtime story
Disadvantages: None

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Peace at Last by Jill Murphy =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Peace at Last is a children's fiction book about a family of three bears, Mr Bear, Mrs Bear and Baby Bear. One evening they are all tired and so off they go to bed. Mrs Bear falls asleep quickly but Mr Bear cannot get to sleep, and just as Mr Bear is trying to sleep…….SNORE, said Mrs Bear, SNORE, SNORE, SNORE…..Oh no said Mr Bear I can't stand THIS, so he got up ...
...is not asleep either….he is lying in bed pretending to be an aeroplane……NYAAOW!!! Went Baby Bear, NYAAOW, NYAAOW, NYAAOW….Oh no said Mr Bear I can't stand THIS, so he got up and went to sleep in the living room. …….TICK-TOCK went the living room clock, TICK-TOCK, TICK-TOCK, TICK-TOCK! And so the story goes until at last Mr Bear finally gets to sleep……but where does he sleep? And is it the sleep he wished for? I first read this book to my own children ... Read review

Advantages: Use of repetition, well illustrated, strong family feel.
Disadvantages: Not a particularly strong moral.

The bear family are tired and decide to go to bed. Mr Bear cannot sleep. It does not help when Mrs Bear starts snoring, he goes to Baby Bear's room and he is not asleep either. He is playing aeroplane noises in bed. Mr Bear goes from room to room trying to find somewhere quiet to sleep. Will he ever get any rest? "Peace at Last" by Jill Murphy is a simplistically told story of one poor bears futile attempts to get a decent nights rest. As we follow ...
...is forced to endure a variety of sounds from snoring to dripping taps. Jill Murphy has written a repetitive tale that will be popular with all pre-schoolers as it certainly is with my three year old. Murphy's repetitive language are coupled with pages that slowly increase in length, indicating the increasing frustrations of Mr Bear. This allows my three-year-old to become easily hooked in the early, less descriptive pages and she is aware of Mr Bear's ... Read review

Advantages: Excellent read-aloud picture book
Disadvantages: Night-time illustrations - slightly gloomy

...that it is hard to go wrong with David Melling, and I would certainly say the same about Jill Murphy. Peace at Last by Jill Murphy Macmillan Children's Books, 2007 Paperback, 36 pages ISBN 0230015484 Price £5.99 (Amazon £3.59) This is a printed book, not an audio book. ... Read review

Advantages: lovely story and illustrations
Disadvantages: none

Peace at Last' is a lovely picture book written and illustrated by Jill Murphy. It tells the story of a family of bears and what happened one night when Mr Bear found it difficult to sleep! It all starts well enough for Mr Bear - all the family are tired and all go up to bed. Mr and Mrs Bear get into bed together and we are treated to a lovely picture of the two bears - one fast asleep and the other wide awake! Why, you might ask, can't Mr Bear ...
...VERY LOUDLY! I quite like this role reversal as normally, or so it is in my house, the man who keeps the woman awake! Or is that just me? Anyway, back to the story...Mr Bear gets very fed up and says 'I can't stand THIS' and up he gets to go and found somewhere quiet to sleep. However, as you can probably imagine, nothing is that straightforward. Everywhere he goes - Little Bear's room, the kitchen, the living room, the garden - there is always ... Read review