As if you didn’t already look forward to bedtime, five new books you’ll want to read — with or without your kids.

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, by Jenny Slate and Dean Fleischer-Camp
Marcel the Shell (a YouTube phenom with more than 12 million views) tries out life as a children’s picture book protagonist. The dreamlike illustrations and his quirky personality (his dog is a piece of lint) make him one of our favorite kid lit newcomers.

The Listeners/These Train Tracks, by Breathe Owl Breathe
From the band Breathe Owl Breathe comes a children’s book that time forgot. A canvas-covered volume features two stories illustrated by reproductions of woodcut prints that start at each end of the book and meet in the middle, where you’ll find a seven-inch record of both narratives recorded as indie-folk songs.

Birdie’s Big-Girl Dress, by Sujean Rim
DailyCandy’s illustrator emeritus publishes her second children’s book about a precocious little girl who likes to dress up. It’s the perfect bedtime tale for moms and daughters who know their way around a dressing room.

Stuck, by Oliver Jeffers
Little Floyd’s kite gets stuck in a tree, so naturally he throws his shoe up after it. When his shoe gets lodged in the branches too, an unexpected cast of projectiles (a cat, a ladder, a fire engine) follows. Read-out-loud fun at its best.

Eli, No, by Katie Kirk
Try to resist the bold graphic illustrations in Kirk’s debut children’s book. But it’s the toddler tough-love lesson — “No!” doesn’t mean we love you any less — that has us stealing one last snuggle before lights out.

HO, HO, HO
Santa’s Enchanted Forest
What: Tons of rides, shows, and twinkly lights make it impossible not to feel the holiday spirit.
Why: Drop a note in the jolly guy’s mailbox to ensure a tricycle is under the tree.
When: Thru Jan. 8, 2012. Daily, 5 p.m.-midnight.
Where: Tropical Park, 7900 SW 40th St. (305-226-8316). Tickets online at etix.com. Adults and children 10 and up, $26; children 3-9, $18; under 3, free.

ARGH
Pirate Island
What: Search for treasure, scale the rope ladder, and climb aboard the ship.
Why: Little Bluebeards are welcome to walk the plank.
When: Opens Sat. Daily, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Dec. 24, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Dec. 31, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Where: Miami Children’s Museum, 980 MacArthur Cswy. (305-373-5437). Adults and children, $12; under 1, free.

HARMONIZE
Piano Story Time
What: Miami Piano Academy spices things up with free musical accompaniment.
Why: They manage to make books sound even better.
When: Sun., 2 p.m.
Where: Books & Books, 265 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables (305-442-4408).

Photos: Courtesy of Penguin Young Readers; Courtesy of Little, Brown Books; Courtesy of Abrams Books