Bear's Day Out

This is my 10 month old daughter's favorite book. She loves the bright illustrations and repetitive, sing-song story. In fact, when she wrestles and cries during diaper changes, I just recite some of this story to her and she is instantly calm, listening to me. I don't agree that it is either sad or scary, because although the bear decides the city is not for him, he makes new friends who help him. Maybe it's different for a preschooler, though.

This is a great book, it illicits a response which I think is wonderful for children. I loved the illustrations, so colorful. This bear has an adventure in the city, but in the end it is too much for him, luckily some children find him in the park and take him home and play in the sea with him. Read this to my niece she enjoyed the story, and as I said responded to the sort of sing along. She also liked the colorful illustrations.

Our three-year-old LOVES this book. He enjoys repeating the phrases like "I'm a bear in a cave. In a cave? In a cave!". Our one-year-old looks to his big brother when he knows it's his turn to "read." Fun family book!

We first borrowed this book from our public library. It was so much fun I had to purchase it. My 5-year old LOVES this book! Cute text and pictures to go along.

A lonely bear lives in a cave and plays by the sea, "I walk by the sea. By the sea? By the sea! And I play in the waves all day. Splishy splash, splashy splash, splishy splashy splish"; then he hears a sound, "Vroomy Vroom" from a nearby city and he comes splashing out of the sea to follow this noise, "And I traveled to the city far away. Chuffy chuff, Chuffy chuff, Chuffy chuffity chuff." He travels with some very surprised passengers on a train, visits a thriving marketplace and enters a city park. As in his earlier classic, "We're going on a bear hunt" (Margaret K. McElderry Books, 1989), the story ends with a hurried retreat when Bear feels overwhelmed, "But people laughed at me. Hee hee hee ha ha ha Hee hee ha ha ha." The bear is rescued by some young children and they run back through the park and the market, ride on the train and splash in the sea; the final sweet illustration that is featured on the book cover shows the children in the bear's cave sleeping contentedly between his paws. Watercolor illustrations are filled with color and energy and contemporary multicultural details: a man on the train with his mouth wide open reads a newspaper, a market vendor sporting a bracelet around one wrist holds up a fish for sale and an older gentleman who is wearing a tie listens to an MP3 player. In one charming illustration, the large bear sits on a narrow swing with his big feet extended; his pinpoint blue eyes and tiny mouth suggest the appearance of a cuddly teddy bear. A lovely picture showing a day time view of a beach decorates the front inside cover while an evening view of the same beach appears all in blue on the back inside cover. There are many opportunities for audience participation; I just had great fun reading this book to a preschool group but it should also appeal to children in grades, k-2.