Goodnight Mr. Darcy: A BabyLit® Parody Picture Book

I love Jane Austen novels (especially "Pride and Prejudice"). And I love the original "Goodnight Moon," whose rollicking rhymes I must have read a 100 times when my kids were little. So I put this book on my wishlist, sight unseen, thinking that I would love the mashup of the two. However, after having received this as a gift for the holidays, I must say that I do not like it. Perhaps I was just not in the mood, after a full day of watching Doctor Who and eating Frango mints, for a parody of a children's classic and a classic of British literature. But the first time I read "Goodnight Mr. Darcy", I felt cheated, and wish I had gotten a bottle of bath salts or even a fruitcake, rather than this book. The illustrations are charming, but the rhymes are not, and to my mind, it's not worth the $17 price tag. Janeites beware!

If you know enough about Jane Austen to appreciate the title of this review, and if you have ever read, even once, Goodnight Moon (by Margaret Wise Brown), then you will LOVE this book. GOODNIGHT MR. DARCY is endearing on every level. It has perfect illustrations which evoke the same kind of magic Clement Hurd created in Brown's original book, inspiring us again with a perfectly applied primary color palette. It also parallels the same word format and rhyme scheme...but with the wonderful Ms. Austen's characters and key phrases. The mouse is back from Goodnight Moon to keep us company, and the fireplace is lit to keep us warm as Mr. Darcy realizes he must say "goodnight pride" in order to earn the right to say "goodnight bride."

Kate Coombs' perfectly spare narration combines with Alli Arnold's heartwarming illustrations to, with the inspiration of Goodnight Moon, create a wholly charming and delightful story for children of any age. A must-have for all Jane Austen fans who would like to inspire the next generation!

Cute concept and a must have because I LOVE Pride and prejudice but the book did not flow well when reading out loud- kind of awkward on the tongue but kiddo loves the pictures and picks this book to read every day.

Gave this as apart of gift to one of my dear, dear friends who's favorite movie is Pride and Prejudice! SHE LOVED THIS! She immediately wanted to go online and buy it for her other obsessed friends. Gift success! :)

Rhyme scheme? Iambic pentameter? And good grief! Where are the Empire waists? The brooding Darcy? The...anything?

My copy of the book arrived today, and I was so excited that I sat down right away to read it, as soon as I opened the box. Heh-heh! So many funny lines. "Goodnight Jane, and goodnight blush; Goodnight Mr Bingley, goodnight mush" with hearts in Bingley's eyes. I was very pleased that Wickham was completely absent from the storyline.

For such a little book for children, there were important concepts. Mr Bennet tells Mrs Bennet to "hush" when she gossips, Darcy loves Lizzy for her fine eyes and wit (intelligence), and Lizzy says, "Goodnight Mr Darcy, Goodnight pride" – but all ends well, with "Goodnight Elizabeth, Goodnight bride." So if your little one is ready to understand concepts such as gossip and pride and apologizing, you can introduce them gently with this book.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that fans and lovers of Jane Austen's novels can't get enough of her works. A search through online book retailers like Amazon result in thousands of listing inspired by her life, her world and her novels from fiction titles, biographies and history to self-help books that offer dating advice and how to improve oneself. So it is not surprising that there are publications that focus on mothers with babies and toddlers to help kick-start the habit of loving Jane Austen's oeuvres at a young age.

When I was approached by the publicists of Gibbs Smith to review Goodnight Mr. Darcy, I jumped at the chance to try something that I would normally not do. In all truthfulness, I have never read any of their books though I have known that they have previously released Little Miss Austen: Pride & Prejudice: A BabyLit Counting Primer, Little Miss Austen: Sense & Sensibility: An Opposites Primer and So Jane: Crafts and Recipes for an Austen-Inspired Life from my research into Austen-inspired publications. So I have set myself the challenge and hopefully this review will shed light into whether you should get it.

Readers who are familiar with the characters of Pride and Prejudice might instantly conclude that this book is all about Mr Darcy. You are partly wrong for it encompasses several main characters who attend the Netherfield ball and their reactions afterwards. The story then shifts forward to Mr Darcy's disastrous proposal and then the happy union between one of the most loved couple in English literature. The words used are very simple that I am sure children would have no problem understanding and enjoying this very short book.

What attracted me the most are the cute illustrations by Alli Arnold. They are beautifully drawn and coloured and I adore them especially Elizabeth Bennet. She looks elegant and poised in a Regency orange dress. Jane is how I imagine her to be, blonde and pretty but I notice she doesn't look exactly like a Regency lady. Her hair is let down and her dress is a tad too modern. If I had to be a bit nit-picky, some of the garments worn by the ladies do not conform to Regency standards as the waistline fall naturally. If you have seen many of Jane Austen film adaptations, you would have seen that the waistline resides just below the bosom. On the other hand the gentleman and officers are done just right that I could not find fault with any of them.

All in all, Goodnight Mr. Darcy is great that I would recommend to any Austenesque readers, young and old alike. This is a great diversion from reading my usual fare. I would not hesitate to pick up more of these type of books although I am not a mother.

SUMMARY: This story takes place in the Netherfield ballroom and then skips to the end where weddings take place.

ILLUSTRATIONS: The illustrations are similar to those of Good Night moon, but in a less refined way,

THE GOOD: I was looking forward to reading this book, because of my love of Jane Austen and Pride and Prejudice. The concept was good, but it in no way delivered.
THE NOT AS GOOD: The rhymes didn't rhyme ("In the great ballroom/ there was a country dance/and a well played tune/and Elizabeth Bennet." Apparently dance and Bennet rhyme? The wording was lacking. I had to look over the pages over and over to figure out who was who and what was going on. It was confusing (and I've read the original book a million times). The story was choppy. We say good night bufoon, but we don't know why or who this is. And Elizabeth is dreaming of Darcy after the ball? I think not. Not to mention there is a mouse on every single page. I could have done without that! I don't recommend this book, especially to those of us who are die hard Pride and Prejudice fans. This is one book you can do without.

Bought this for my daughter for Christmas. Hope she likes it. I sure did!

Adorable! This is the star attraction of my Jane Austen bookshelf. I love children's literature and I love Jane Austen. The original "Goodnight Moon" color scheme and artwork is maintained for a darling link to my grown up son's long ago baby books. The tiny mouse from "Goodnight Moon" even turns up on most pages! And the references to all my Jane Austen P&P favorites, especially Lizzy and Darcy, of course, make this a charming read. Can't wait til my 1 year old grand daughter is old enough to enjoy this book with me.