Waking Up Is Hard to Do Book

One of the most popular songs in music history becomes one of the most delightful children’s books ever—complete with a CD featuring two completely new tunes by NEIL SEDAKA!

Rise and shine! It’s morning time. The alarm clock’s ringing, the birds are singing. Everything’s saying: get up, get going! Breakfast is warming, school is calling. The streets are bustling, all the world is stirring. It’s sure to be a happy day with this bright and sunny picture book and CD, with new lyrics based on the hit song by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield. Daniel Miyares’s delightful art opens your eyes with its vivid colors, playful details, and adorable collection of animal characters. And to make waking up just a little easier, there’s a CD with Neil Sedaka singing this happy song, plus two brand new songs written by Neil for this book and CD set: “Lightnin’ Jim” and “Sing.” Warm and friendly and full of fun, this is a musical and visual celebration of the everyday joys of home, family, and neighborhood.

The song “Breaking Up is Hard to Do” was first released in 1962 and quickly went to Number One on Billboard’s Top 100. Sedaka re-released the song in 1975, changing it from an up-tempo tune to a ballad, and made music history when it reached #1 on the charts, becoming the first song recorded in two different versions by the same artist to reach Number One.

Publishers Weekly

"Don't you cry and don't be blue,/ Wakin' up is hard to do," reads veteran singer-songwriter Sedaka's upbeat adaptation of the 1962 chart-topping tune, "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do," which he wrote with Howard Greenfield. As in the original version, the new lyrics are repetitive, but plenty jaunty, too; there are some stumbles in logic, as when Sedaka invites readers to "Just listen to the birdies sing,/ And the flowers that await the spring." With half-lidded eyes, a young alligator struggles through his morning routine--brushing his many teeth with an oversize toothbrush, before heading downstairs for breakfast and out to the school bus, finally ready for the day ahead. Miyares's funky cartoons are peppered with fun details: during the gator family's boisterous breakfast, the text reads, "Wear a smile, don't you be blue," and while the alligator doesn't take this advice, his bacon and eggs do. Though the electric artwork tends to be quite literal, it certainly captures the brightness of a new day. Sedaka performs this song and two others on an accompanying CD. Ages 5 8. (Sept.)