G-Rated Version of Profanity-Laced Picture Book Published by Akashic Books

April 5, 2012 Brooklyn Eagle Staff
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By Mary Frost

Brooklyn Daily Eagle

BROOKLYN — When Adam Mansbach’s satirical picture book Go the F— to Sleep came out last year, it became an instant sensation with parents across the country. The hilarious but profanity-laden book (beautifully illustrated by Brooklyn artist Ricardo Cortés) was said to capture the frustrations of trying to get a beloved child to bed for the night.

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Published by Brooklyn-based Akashic Books, signed copies of Go the F— to Sleep flew off the tables at the Brooklyn Book Festival — where Mansbach served on a panel about “acceptable parenting.”  Fox 2000 Films bought the film rights, and Mansbach sold a sitcom to CBS based on his experiences with the uproar surrounding the book.

But the book, while giving exhausted parents the giggles, is definitely not for children. So author Mansbach penned another version of the book with kids in mind. Seriously, Just Go to Sleep, is a G-rated bedtime story that retains most of the original wording but removes the obscenity.

Mansbach told Akashic Books, “We were getting a lot of feedback from parents, saying that their kids loved the book — read in an altered form — because they recognized themselves in the character of the mischievous kid who’s winning the bedtime battle, and thought it was hilarious. So we figured we’d do a companion volume that lets kids in on the fun.” The new rendition includes updated illustrations by Cortés.

Here’s a comparison of the opening passage, first in the original book, next in the G-rated version:

X-Rated Version:
The cats nestle close to their kittens,

The lambs have lain down with the sheep,

You’re cozy and warm in your bed, my dear,

Please go the f— to sleep.

G-Rated Version:
The cats nestle close to their kittens,

The lambs have lain down with the sheep,

You’re cozy and warm in your bed, my dear,

Please, just this once, go to sleep.

Seriously, Just Go to Sleep is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Akashic Books and other booksellers.


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