Peepo! by Janet and Allan Ahlberg

Peepo! is the book you reach for when it's time to snuggle up with your baby and get ready for bed. Full of beautiful illustrations and with descriptive rhyming couplets, I have had many the happy cuddle with both of my babies reading this book. 

Originally published by Viking in 1981, Peepo! was written by Allan Ahlberg and illustrated by Janet Ahlberg, a married couple who worked together on numerous children's books. The book walks through the day of a baby and all the things he sees, from the sun in the window when he wakes up to the baby in the mirror, just like him, when he goes to bed. Every other page has a circle cut out of the middle to accompany the word 'Peepo', which looks through to the illustration of the things the baby can see. This is a wonderful idea as it gives a certain interactive quality to the book, my 7 month old enjoys looking through the circles and playing Peepo! with me. 

The book is set in the 1940's; there are several hints towards this, the mother with a hairnet on her head, the father bringing in a bucketful of coal, the baby's nightie warming on the oven door. It is also evident in the illustrations; the clothes that are worn, the furniture, the tin bath, the fireplace. Allan Ahlberg confirmed this when he stated that the baby in Peepo! was actually him (he was born in 1938). I think the setting really helps to add to the warmth of the story, you picture a time which is a lot more innocent than the times we're in now, a time that isn't cluttered up with technology and electronics. Even the mention of the two sisters squabbling over the baby doesn't take away from the story, it just makes it more ordinary and everyday. 

The story implies that the Grandma lives with the family, which I think is an appropriate addition given that multi-generation living is becoming more and more common these days, much like back in the post-war era. The illustrations often show all members of the family, one person looking after the baby whilst the others are in the background, the children playing, skipping and fishing, and the adults working, ironing, cooking, cleaning windows. 

The ending of the book makes it a perfect bedtime story. The baby is taken up to bed by his mother and father, given a kiss goodnight, and on the final page the story ends with the line, "fast asleep and dreaming, what did he see?". This is my daughter's favourite page of the book, she likes to talk about what the baby might have dreamed about and I love hearing her ideas, which normally follow the pattern of what her recent dreams have been. 

I remember reading this book when I was small, and now, reading it to my children, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that it's one of my favourite children's books. It's aimed at babies, but my three year old still adores it now. It's ageless and timeless and every child should have this book on their shelves.