Does your child have sleep fears? My 4-year-old granddaughter does several times a week so when I was offered the chance to check out two books especially for kids who experience sleep fears I said send them on! Anything I can do to help this sweet girl sleep better will be worth it and since they’re books, they’re something I can share with her via video chat on my Alexa device.

The books, Dream Grabber and Dream Jumper, were written by John R. Green. He’s an award-winning writer and television producer. The books are endorsed by licensed psychologists as well as well-known personalities including Robin Roberts (Good Morning America), and Lori Greiner (Shark Tank).

“Dream Grabber is a charming and delightful bedtime story, beautifully validating a universal childhood fear rather than dismissing it,” says Kim Bergman, PhD, Licensed Psychologist. Each book encourages nurturing bedtime routines and helps children understand that dreamland should be an enjoyable and secure place to be.

The books are based on the bedtime ritual Green developed for his own children and so the book is written with a father as the adult settling the children into bed. The author realizes that mothers may be more traditionally associated with putting kids to bed and he’s hoping his portrayal will encourage more men to become active in the bedtime ritual as well as model non-traditional families like his own.

Dream Grabber and Dream Jumper

Each story has a similar story. Dad is there to help the child put aside any worries that might keep them from sleeping and letting them know that they can create a soothing dream for themselves. Dream Grabber features a small boy, while the Dream Jumper is a story about a young girl. I found the traditional stereotypes disconcerting and would have preferred one book that works for both genders. As written, it implies there are girls’ dreams and activities and boys’ dreams and activities. I’m probably more sensitive to gender stereotyping than most and I know there is a huge market for parents who prefer genders be in traditional roles.

In Dream Grabber, the boy is shown how dad can overcome his son’s sleeping fears by replacing his bad dreams with good dreams that float in the air. In Dream Jumper the girl dreads being alone in her dreams so dad lets her know that he has magical powers that let him jump into her dreams while they’re both asleep.

A 4-Year-Olds Take on the Books

My 4-year-old granddaughter objected to the daddy’s magical skills for creating good dreams – she stopped the reading and said to me, “Nana, magic isn’t real.” What could I say, she was right. But then I reminded her that princesses are fairytales don’t exist either, but they’re fun to pretend they do. I think that settled her little mind and I told her that she had the magic power to create good dreams for herself just by deciding what she wanted to dream about before she went to sleep.

Both books are available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online and offline booksellers.

For more information about the author and his books, please visit timetodreambooks.com

About Dream Grabber and Dream Jumper