{"id":26664,"date":"2015-03-06T13:13:27","date_gmt":"2015-03-06T17:13:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=26664"},"modified":"2015-03-06T13:13:27","modified_gmt":"2015-03-06T17:13:27","slug":"review-of-a-library-book-for-bear-by-bonny-becker-and-kady-macdonald-denton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=26664","title":{"rendered":"Review of A Library Book for Bear, by Bonny Becker and Kady MacDonald Denton"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"library_book_for_bear_large\"<\/a>A Library Book for Bear<\/em><\/p>\n

by Bonny Becker
\nillustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton<\/p>\n

Candlewick Press, 2014. 40 pages.
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

I do so love the Bear and Mouse books by Bonny Becker and Kady MacDonald Denton! Just when I thought I couldn\u2019t like them any more, the fifth book is about a trip to the library.<\/p>\n

The whole pattern of the book is similar to those that have gone before. The beginning sets the stage:<\/p>\n

Bear had never been to the library.
\nHe had seven very nice books at home:
\nthree about kings and queens, three about honeybees,
\nand one about pickles.
\nBear was quite sure he had
\nall the books he would ever need.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Naturally, it\u2019s Bear\u2019s friend Mouse who convinces him to come to the library. There\u2019s a nice little twist in their method of transportation. (I hadn\u2019t seen Bear leave his house before.)<\/p>\n

Bear skated and Mouse rode in the basket to the library, the wind rippling nicely through their fur.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As the pattern with the Bear books inevitably includes Bear getting angry and talking VERY LOUDLY, and since they are, after all, on a trip to the library, readers in the know will be getting ready for a problem.<\/p>\n

In this case, there’s a nice paradox in that what Bear bellows is, “QUIET VOICES IN THE LIBRARY!”<\/p>\n

I must say that the librarian deals with it beautifully, and it’s no spoiler to say that after enjoying Storytime, bear goes happily home with seven new books, one oh-so-appropriate one of which Bear reads to Mouse that very same day.<\/p>\n

Two things are consistently delightful about this series: the illustrations and the language.<\/p>\n

The illustrations are cartoons, which always amaze me when they communicate depths of emotion — as these inevitably do. In this book, I especially like the drawing of the round stepstool with rubberized top — exactly the same kind we use at our library. There are plenty of little details like that, but consistent on every page are the wonderful expressions on faces.<\/p>\n

And the language! Bonny Becker does not talk down to kids, and it gives a melodious tone to her books. They simply beg to be read aloud, and I have read them happily to age groups from preschool to third grade. Bear says things like, “Completely unnecessary,” “Most excessive!” “Terribly extravagant!” “I can assure you that pickles are quite interesting!”<\/p>\n

Another delightful offering from Bonny Becker and Kady MacDonald Denton. How do they keep it up so consistently?<\/p>\n

candlewick.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Picture_Books\/library_book_for_bear.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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