Good Night, Good Beach

An evocative bedtime picture book that distills the essence of a family summer at the beach–skin sticky with salt, sandy feet, waves hush-hushing and a shell under the pillow. Summer holidays by the sea have a rhythm all their own. With a few resonant images, Cowley takes us straight to the end of a long hot day with beach treasures under the pillow and the salty smell of the sea. The cadence of the final words echoes the shushing waves in a gentle signal of time for readers to sleep–“good sand, good sea, good beach, good night.” This simple poem by internationally-renowned author Joy Cowley transports the reader to a childhood summer with language that asks to be read over and over. Hilary Jean Tapper’s warm watercolor and ink illustrations add an inclusive cast of extended family, friends, and children of different ages.