CONTRARY BEAR
by Phyllis Root & illustrated by Laura Cornell
A small girl narrates this book; her best friend is Bear, called Contrary Bear by her father for always doing the opposite of what he instructs. Contrary Bear wreaks household havoc and makes an enemy of Dad, but all is patched up in the end. Root (Coyote and the Magic Words, 1993, etc.) imbues the narrator with a highly expressive voice, characterized by understated irony; readers will be quick to see the link between Contrary Bear's behavior and that of the girl. Cornell illustrates with reliably zany cartoons; the bear is fully complicit in (and occasionally prime mover to) all the antics, with a fierce march and a sense of humor—in fact, he's crazy. His facial expressions in particular are hilarious and the little girl who loves him is a charmer. (Picture book. 3-6)