4 Helpful and Beautiful Picture Books in German on Nightmares
Is your child haunted by scary monsters at night? Children, particularly between at the age of 3-5 years, often have nightmares, sometimes because of something that terrified them during the day or because they are going through a stressful period. Their dreams are more intense than ours, because they can't always discern between dream and real life. They also dream much more then we do. About half of their sleep they dream (with adults it's about twenty percent). There are many ways to ease them through this experience and help them cope. A nightlight, talking with them, making fun in the dark... Reading picture books about others that conquered the monster and their fear is a great way, too. Just don't read them aloud right before turning the light off, during daytime might be better. So here are some books we recommend!
Philip Waechter
ROSI IN DER GEISTERBAHN
Rosi for weeks dreams of terrible monsters devouring her. So she decides to do something about it: she visits a dream expert, buys books and learns coping mechanisms. And then one day she hails a taxi to take the monsters on and conquer her fear! Despite the scary topic this book with the friendly rabbit Rosi has super cheerful pictures with lots of details that children love.
3 years and up.
Michael Ende/Annegret Fuchshuber
DAS TRAUMFRESSERCHEN
Michael Ende is one of the big names of the German children's literature, his books MOMO and THE NEVER ENDING STORY are classics. So is this fairy tale about Princess Schlafittchen who lives in Schlummerland (slumberland) where good sleep is valued ever so highly. Too bad that Princess Schlafittchen is haunted by terrible dreams and gets paler and thinner by the day. And despite her father's plea, nobody can help. Until he meets the Traumfresserchen, the dream eater...
4 years and up.
Ben Furman /Mathias Weber
ANTONS ALBTRAUM
Anton has awful nightmares and he is even more distraught, when he learns he should sleep at his grand parents because his parents are going out that evening. After all, what does his grand-ma know about nightmares? It turns out: a lot! His grandmother teaches him a great trick to turn bad dreams into good ones.
A beautiful Finnish book by a children's psychiatrist - it includes an appendix for parents.
4 years and up.
Edith Schreiber-Wicke /Carola Holland
KAI TRÄUMT MONSTER
Kai doesn't want to go to bed. He is too worried the slimy monsters will reappear in his sleep. But to never sleep again is not a good solution, it's not possible. Fortunately his mother has a better idea: a dream friend who fights the monsters with him!
4 years and up.
