Goodnight Box

Project Overview

Goodnight Box by Michael B. Horn is a bedtime picture book with a genuinely original premise: instead of counting sheep, it introduces children to functional fitness movements — box jumps, deadlifts, and more — through rhythmic, playful text that makes exercise feel like part of the natural wind-down of a day. Michael B. Horn writes with infectious enthusiasm, making the movements feel joyful and approachable rather than athletic, and the story doubles as a genuine family activity as well as a book. Every purchase also supports nonprofit organisations connecting at-risk youth with mentors, adding a real-world dimension to the book’s message about healthy habits.

The illustration challenge was making fitness movements legible and fun on the page for very young readers — the body positions needed to be clear enough to understand and imitate, while the overall visual tone remained cosy, warm, and firmly in bedtime-story territory.

Role

Full book illustration covered fitness movement illustration that stays clear, fun, and age-appropriate for very young readers, and a warm bedtime atmosphere balanced against active energy, along with print-ready file preparation for Mascot Books.

The core challenge was making body positions legible enough for a child to understand and imitate while keeping the overall tone cosy and firmly in bedtime-story territory rather than athletic.

Process

Every project follows this same structured path, so you always know where we are and what comes next. You review and approve at the sketch stage and the line art stage — nothing moves to color until you’re happy. By the time the final spread is rendered, there are no surprises.