Little Bear becomes a master of equivocation to avoid confronting his fears. He's not frightened by the night—he just isn't tired. He's not scared of the water—he just feels cold. And he's not afraid of bees—he just doesn't like honey. ``Scaredy Bear, Scaredy Bear!'' his siblings tease. Then, when a tiny cub stuck up in a tree calls out for help, Little Bear's own fears melt away. He rescues the wee bear and after being praised by its parent, feels confident enough to take on a buzzing hive and get himself some honey. Fuzzy watercolors give the book a suitably cozy feel, and even the bees—with their big red clown noses and stingers shaped like chocolate chips—seem more likely to snuggle than scare. Predictable cuddliness, but comforting to preschoolers about to commence their own foraging. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-531-09546-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orchard
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1997
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
As Peter watches a small spider crawl across the floor, he declares he will become one. ``And what will you do?'' his mother asks. As he limns his plans, Peter's mother comments, sweeping her little boy/spider outdoors or washing it down the drain, but he always crawls free for another adventure; then Mother declares that she'll become a spider, too. Banks presents a duel of imaginations that could go on interminably were it not for the loving mother's gentle ending of it. Hallensleben's bright, cat-inclusive illustrations show readers the boy-as-spider in mischievous activities like pilfering his mother's lunch to napping on her book, which is open to a witty, bright party scene where the spider blends in well with the animal guests. Some of the mother's anti-spider tactics may seem threatening, as well as the view from the child/spider's perspective in many of the pictures, but the text's even tenor and the pictures' tender expressions—to say nothing of the cat's equanimity—assures readers know it's all a game. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: Oct. 14, 1996
ISBN: 0-374-37151-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1996
Cheerful illustrations accompany a lackluster text that seems more suited to a storyteller's live performance than the page. Shannon (Still More Stories to Solve, 1994, etc.) pens a story of dancing frogs, who shimmy through April rains while being chased by a snake. It's a theatricality, of course, since the snake is comprised of frogs in costume, but that's not the only contrivance. The song the gleeful amphibians sing is full of dance kicks, steps, and hops; as verse it hardly scans and is difficult to read aloud. Fortunately, there is plenty going on in the illustrations, featuring bright frogs and flowers. These reassure by showing just how the performers ``trick'' the audience. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: April 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-688-13121-2
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1995
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