As Grossman (The Banging Book, 1995, etc.) would have it, when a bear hops out of his skin to go snorkeling, Jezebel jumps in, and creates mayhem when people take her for a real grizzly. She scares her class and her mom, and then is dismayed to find that only the bear can unzip the suit. Luckily, the zoo animals see her own eyes peering from inside the bear's throat, and know she's an impostor. An elephant and a little dog help retrieve the bear's bones and free Jezebel. The rhyme starts out catchy, but sags in the middle, along with the plot. What works best here is the eccentric idea of a bear's bones taking a dip; Allen doesn't really explore this in the illustrations, which show a jumble of bones that looks like something the dog dug up, rather than a skinless bear who has been snorkeling. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-8037-1742-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1997
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The little bear is too young for independence when his mother disappears; but with time, perseverance, and luck he does learn to manage on his own. The Caldecott medalist's lovely, expansive watercolors of the sweeping northern wilderness include some striking points of view (e.g. a half-underwater view of the hungry bear, surrounded by salmon) and are the book's strongest feature. An appealing nature story with enough realistic drama to hold attention.~(Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 28, 1991
ISBN: 0-399-22177-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1991
Parallel narratives follow water's path in nature (mist rising to clouds to rain to puddles) and, in smaller inset illustrations, indoors (soup-pot steam condenses on and runs down a window). A second, less clear sequence compares the smell of bathtub soap to the smell of the sea, but the neatly rounded conclusion—frost on the window, snow outside, the child observer finally going out to play—is satisfying. Rand's attractive watercolors are a fine complement to the ideas suggested in the text. An excellent concept book. (Nonfiction/Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: May 3, 1991
ISBN: 1-55970-062-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Arcade
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1991
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