Summertime can be a hard time of year to get youngsters to go to sleep. The sun is still shinning when little ones should be yawning, so here is a list of wonderful picture book stories to lull your little ones to sleep.

All Aboard for Dreamland!, by Melanie Harby, and delightfully illustrated by Geraldo Valerio, is a tantalizing read with an engaging rhythm of words that take you swooping and twirling all of the way to bed. This story is sure to make your toddler smile all the way to sleepland!

How Do You Say Good Night?, by Raina Moore, and illustrated by Robin Luebs, incorporates many different barnyard animals and their exchanges of good night to their young. This book has a sweet rendition of love and hugs throughout.

Here is a book full of bedtime stories that is perfect to set right next to the bed. 28 Good Night Stories, compiled by Brigitte Weninger, and colorfully illustrated by Eve Tharlet, are stories that a brown bear and a small angel share with one another. The stories have a similar theme of going to bed, but more than that there is a strong message of friendship and kindness throughout. What a pleasant way to go to sleep!

Going to bed can be fun for a toddler as in the story, Peekaboo, written and illustrated by Rachel Isadora. Everyone in the family gets in on the fun of making the magic of bedtime in this simple story. This book is perfect for the quick read when time is short.

And here's just the opposite of story time. You'll need about 20 minutes to read this story, but don't be surprised when your youngster asks to hear it again tomorrow night. Elsie Piddock Skips in Her Sleep, by Eleanor Farjeon, and illustrated by Charlotte Voake, is all about a young girl's passion to skip and how it ultimately saves the day.

Now for stories about children who don't want to go to bed. Here's an early chapter book from poet Jack Prelutsky, My Parents Think I'm Sleeping — Level 3. This funny book celebrates all of those kids who go to sleep with a flashlight and book in hand.

No More Yawing!, by Paeony Lewis, and illustrated by Brita Granstrom, has Florence trying to prolong getting ready for bed by asking her mom to kiss her stuffed monkey and now he needs to be sung to and on and on and on. But a remedy is on the way.

Henry's Bed, by Margaret Perversi, and illustrated by Ron Brooks, has a similar storyline but Henry wants his Momma, then his Papa, to sleep with him — and it doesn't end there.

Topsy-Turvy Bedtime, by Joan Levine, and illustrated by Tony Auth, has a reverse psychology in the storyline. When a young girl, who has stated that she doesn't want to go to bed, comes up with an idea to let her put the parents to bed. Her parents begin acting like her and asking for just one more story and so on. She soon learns an important lesson about bedtime.

Sleepovers can make it difficult to calm down those wigglers and talkers. In the Night Garden, by Barbara Joosse, and illustrated by Elizabeth Sayles, has three friends staying the night and playing with their imaginations before finally going to bed — where their dreams take over where their play left off.

What if your child is frightened of nightmares? Here are some stories to help overcome this problem. The Dream Jar, by Lindan Lee Johnson, and illustrated by Serena Curmi, is a wonderful solution to bad dreams as a girl helps her younger sister change her bad dream to a “dreamy dream.” This book is wonderfully written and illustrated and sure to help!

Little Rabbit and the Night Mare, by Kate & M. Sarah Klise, is a sweet story about how one little rabbit confronts his nightmare and comes up with a great solution. This is a perfect story for those frightened to go to bed at night.

Bump in the Night, by Edward Hemingway, is a similar story about facing what scares you most.

And lastly, Good Night, Sleep Tight, Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite!, by Diane deGroat, has Gilbert afraid to go to sleep when a friend tells him a scary story. This book will help those who might have some reservations about going on an overnight campout.