The Bear and her Book

This is a book for any youngster who has a lively imagination and has become a lover of books. It features a big brown bear who ‘loved her home, but wanted more.’ The refrain, ‘The world is big and there’s much to see, and a bear must go where she wants to be,’ is repeated throughout the story, as Bear sets off looking for adventure, whilst around her neck hangs her special prize, her Bear’s Big Book of Being Wise. She sets off, meeting a wide variety of creatures, each one suffering: a poorly claw, a cold, a swollen eye. Bear shows great sympathy for each creature and refers to her special book. ‘Dodgy eyeballs…page one-oh-three- here are some tips to help you see…’ There is huge empathy between Bear and each malingering creature, both in the bouncy rhyming text and the illustrator’s delightful pictures. But despite each friendship secured, the Bear still seeks… more. The resolution is beautifully crafted, involving Bear as a stowaway, and finally reaching shore again and discovering a welcoming bookshop. What does she spot, highlighted in the window display, but Bear’s Big Book of Being Wise, volume two! Great delight…Bear sits surrounded by piles of books and murmurs, ‘I don’t need more.’ The artwork supports each fresh adventure and environment with great sympathy; there is a starlit shore, a green, cool jungle, a sandy desert, each glowing with its own characteristics. Bear enthuses over each encounter but…. she still wants more. So the ending is fitting, for it is in the bookshop that she finds the greatest satisfaction. Readers feel she has found home.  There are many moments of awe and wonder, in both the sensitive text and the splendid illustrations.