The Postal Service will release its Goodnight Moon stamps on Friday, May 2.
Written by Margaret Wise Brown with artwork by Clement Hurd, “Goodnight Moon” is among the best-selling children’s books of all time.
Reflecting philosophical shifts in early childhood education that began in the early 20th century, “Goodnight Moon” revolutionized children’s publishing when it debuted in 1947.
It was one of the first books written for very young children that focuses on everyday experiences, which became known as “here-and-now literature.”
The quiet, lullaby-like book encourages children and their parents to imagine themselves in the book’s familiar “great green room,” saying goodnight to everything they see.
Illustrations alternate between panoramic scenes of the bedroom in vibrant color and black-and-white close-ups of objects in the room.
The sense of peace and security that the book brings helps ease children to sleep.
The pane of 16 stamps features eight details from the picture book:
• The young bunny tucked into bed;
• A painting of three little bears;
• A toy house on the bedroom floor;
• Mittens and socks hung to dry;
• A tiny mouse in front of a fireplace;
• The painting of a cow jumping over the moon;
• The older bunny sitting in the rocking chair with her knitting; and
• A comb, brush and bowl of mush atop the young bunny’s bedside table.
The book’s cover image is in the center of the pane while the back features a black-and-white rendering of the bedroom.
Derry Noyes, an art director for USPS, designed the stamps and pane using Hurd’s illustrations.
A dedication event will take place at the Rabbit hOle Museum in Kansas City, MO.
The Forever stamps will be available at Post Offices and usps.com.
