A sure hit that encourages independence—but not without a bit of gentle teasing.
When disgruntled Little Bear leaves his family to seek adventure outside their forest home, he finds a deserted house—and just enough adventure for one day.
The cover art makes good use of the large, vertical layout, with the comical, long-snouted Little Bear in the foreground and a red, multistoried house in the background. That art immediately poses questions that will be answered in time. For one, why is Little Bear struggling through pine trees with a ruffled, polka-dot piece of cloth tied around his neck and a standing lamp in his paws? From the beginning, text and art create giggles, because Little Bear has so many recognizable human qualities: both resentment and affection toward family members; refusal to play with peers when on an independent mission; imaginative fears; false bravado after returning to the safety of home. Young readers will appreciate the irony evident in several places, as when Little Bear insists that little boys, unlike bear cubs, are unencumbered adventurers. The surprising climax and the coda also provide irony. The text, translated (without credit) from the French, is shot through with wry, funny turns: “Little Bear takes courage into his own paws.” From the scarlet, plant-festooned endpapers to Little Bear’s hilarious antics with house amenities and from Little Bear’s imagined, Sendak-ian monsters to the details of forest animals fleeing through trees, the art perfectly complements the lighthearted text.
A sure hit that encourages independence—but not without a bit of gentle teasing. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 9, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7371-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: July 29, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2018
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Though it is light on specific information about how and why teeth are lost, most children will enjoy relating to Bear in...
Wilson and Chapman continue this popular series that began with Bear Snores On (2002).
Bear has invited his friends for lunch, when “something wiggled, and it wobbled…something moved when he chewed! It was… / Bear’s / loose / tooth!” In full-bleed spreads with a palette dominated by blues and greens, Chapman ably portrays Bear’s concern over this dental dilemma as well as the genuine empathy and determination of his many animal friends when they try to help remove the tooth. On several pages Bear looks right at readers as he reacts to his predicament, bringing them immediately into the story. After Hare, Mouse, Wren, Owl, Badger and others all fail at prying it loose, Bear “used his tongue and…gave a little nudge” until it falls out. A fairy comes as Bear sleeps and leaves “blueberries where Bear’s tooth had been!” Wilson keeps young readers engaged with rhyming text that keeps the gentle action flowing.
Though it is light on specific information about how and why teeth are lost, most children will enjoy relating to Bear in his latest oh-so-cozy adventure. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-4169-5855-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: July 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2011
Sweet.
A caregiving bear shares with its cub how love has defined their relationship from the first moment and through the years as the cub has grown.
With rhymes and a steady rhythm that are less singsong-y than similar books, Stansbie seems to have hit a sweet spot for this offering on the I-love-you-always shelf. Readers follow the adult and child as they share special moments together—a sunset, a splash in a pond, climbing a tree, a snuggle—and the adult tells the child that the love it feels has only grown. Stansbie also takes care not to put promises in the adult bear’s mouth that can’t be delivered, acknowledging that physical proximity is not always possible: “Wherever you are, / even when we’re apart… // I’ll love you forever / with all of my heart.” The large trim size helps the sweet illustrations shine; their emphasis is on the close relationship between parent and child. Shaped peekaboo windows offer glimpses of preceding and succeeding pages, images and text carefully placed to work whatever the context. While the die cuts on the interior pages will not hold up to rough handling, they do add whimsy and delight to the book as a whole: “And now that you’re bigger, / you make my heart sing. / My / beautiful / wonderful / magical / thing.” Those last three adjectives are positioned in leaf-shaped cutouts, the turn of the page revealing the roly-poly cub in a pile of leaves, three formed by the die-cuts. Opposite, three vignettes show the cub appreciating the “beautiful,” the “wonderful,” and the “magical.”
Sweet. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-68412-910-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Silver Dolphin
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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