Tuesday, August 18, 2015

The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep becomes chart-topping bedtime read

Self-published Swedish story promising to make anyone nod off hops to the top of Amazon charts in UK and US

Sleeping child.
‘A new type of bedtime story’ ... Sleeping child. Photograph: Rex Features
A self-published picture book by a Swedish author that promises to help children fall asleep at bedtime has shot to the top of Amazon’s bestseller lists on both sides of the Atlantic, outselling Harper Lee’s new novel Go Set a Watchman and Paula Hawkins’s bestselling thriller The Girl on the Train.

The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep – the front cover emblazoned with the claim “I can make anyone fall asleep” – follows Roger the Rabbit as he and his mother set out to visit Uncle Yawn to help him doze off, meeting the Sleepy Snail and the Heavy-Eyed Owl on the way. Self-published in Swedish by Carl-Johan Forssén Ehrlin in 2011, a clunky English translation was published in April 2014 and has surged to the summit of Amazon.co.uk’s charts over the last five days, moving into the top spot over the weekend in both the US and the UK.

“After massive feedback from parents all over the world, it’s safe to say that The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep is a quick and guaranteed way to help your child relax in the evening or during a nap,” claims its description. “No need for How-to skills, it’s as easy and simple as reading a normal bedtime story with [an] improved language pattern that will help your child to relax and fall asleep.”
More

No comments: