Sing-along lullaby books

Nothing against CDs and tapes like ‘Til Their Eyes Shine, but sometimes it’s nice to lull your restless kids to sleep the old-fashioned way: with soothing poems or, if you can carry a tune, calming songs. Here are several books that can help. Sweet dreams.

The Lullaby Songbook
Edited by Jane Yolen, musical arrangements by Adam Stemple, pictures by Charles Mikolaycak
Each of these 15 classic lullabies, such as ”Cum By Yah” and ”Brahms’ Lullaby,” is preceded by a short history of its origin. Charming full-color illustrations border the pages and surround the songs. A

Nursery Songs & Lullabies
Featuring the art of Bessie Pease Gutmann
These books feature 13 traditional songs from ”Hey Diddle Diddle” to ”The Mulberry Bush” to ”Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.” Illustrated by an American painter who was popular in the 1920s and ’30s, both editions are awash in cherubic children and sweet little puppies. B

Lullabies And Night Songs
Music by Alec Wilder, illustrated by Maurice Sendak, edited by William Engvick
This book features 48 lullabies and night songs that ”aim to end the day with laughter and delight.” Traditional songs abound, and poems by James Thurber, William Blake, and Robert Louis Stevenson are set to music by esteemed composer Wilder. All this innovative material is nestled in between whimsical artwork by Sendak, the author of Where the Wild Things Are. A

Songs from Dreamland
By Lois Duncan, illustrated by Kay Chorao
Fourteen original lullaby poems illustrated by soothing, pastel drawings of sleepy children. If you wonder how these lullabies would sound set to song, there’s also a version (composed by the author’s eldest daughter, Robin Arquette) available on cassette. B