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A VISITOR FOR BEAR
by Bonny Becker, illustrated by
Kady MacDonald Denton
Candlewick, Spring 2008
Picture Book
Grades Preschool-2 |
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News
- A Visitor For Bear hits #2 on the New York Times Children's Best Sellers List!
- Hear Scott Simon and Daniel Pinkwater read a slightly abridged version of “A Visitor for Bear” for National Public Radio! Link: http://xrl.us/visitorforbear
- Bear has also been named an Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award winner for 2008.
- National BookPALS, an organization that uses volunteer professional actors to read books in the classroom, children’s hospitals and cultural institutions, has recommended “A Visitor for Bear” for it’s reading list.
- Horn Book recommended “A Visitor for Bear” in its Summer Reads list for 2008.
Reviews
Selected for Barnes & Noble’s picture book wall for the month of March 2008 in all stores nationwide.
Horn Book
“No visitors allowed.” The sign on Bear’s front door is clear, but one “small and gray and bright-eyed” mouse is undeterred. After Bear refuses to let him in, the mouse begins popping up in Bear’s kitchen, and anti-social Bear—large, round, and intimidating—throws him out each time. The rhythmic text quickly falls into a pattern: the mouse surprises Bear, Bear gets angry; the mouse politely suggests “a spot of tea” or “a crackling fire”; Bear, growing increasingly desperate, orders the mouse to leave (“BEGONE!”). Denton’s warm and inviting illustrations belie Bear’s inhospitable behavior, and Becker’s energetic narrative encourages listeners to participate in telling the story. Fifty-six pages is long for a picture book, but the story zips briskly along, facilitated by effective page turns and not much text per spread. The mouse’s fourth attempt is the charm (or the last straw): when Bear finds the mouse in his teakettle, he breaks down. “I give up...You win. I am undone.” As the tension dissipates, the story slows down, forgoing the predictable pattern and making room for something new...like a “most attentive” listener who laughs at Bear’s jokes. “No one had ever laughed at Bear’s jokes before.” At story’s end, it’s Bear who entreats the mouse to stay for another cup of tea. In the presence of a friend, Bear is transformed; both text and art handle the shift in perspective with aplomb. A surefire storytime hit, A Visitor for Bear won’t wear out its welcome. k.f.
Kirkus
…Charmingly droll, watercolor, ink and gouache illustrations, excellent pacing and the contrast in the sizes of Bear and mouse are a perfect comedic mixture. Kids will giggle each time the mouse reappears and grin with satisfaction when big and little become friends.
School Library Journal Starred Review - February 2008
PreS-Gr 2 –When a friendly mouse knocks at his door, Bear sternly points to the "No Visitors Allowed" sign. Returning to his breakfast preparations, he opens the cupboard only to find the mouse tucked inside a bowl. "Perhaps we could have just a spot of tea," the ever-hopeful guest suggests, but he is again shown the door. Despite boarding the windows shut, stopping up the chimney, and plugging the bathtub drain, the persistent rodent keeps reappearing. Finally Bear admits defeat, "I am undone," and agrees to set out a snack. Much to his surprise, Bear enjoys the company and shares jokes and demonstrates a talent at headstands. The visit prompts him to reconsider his sign: "That’s for salesmen. Not for friends." Denton’s softly hued watercolor illustrations capture the humorous interplay between the unlikely companions. The fastidious, pot-bellied bear wears a tiny apron while the wee mouse with a big personality peeks out of such unlikely places as an egg carton. The lively repetition and superb pacing make this an ideal choice for storytime.–Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada
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