Review by Booklist Review
A little white bear asks his mother, Am I a polar bear? and after hearing Yes, How do you know? She points out the reasons, such as the cub's Arctic birth, snow-white fur, and ability to swim. After the little one counters by listing all the polar bear skills yet to be mastered, she promises, I will stay with you, and I will teach you what polar bears need to know. The story ends conventionally, with an affirmation of the mother's love. Capturing the mood, the eye-catching jacket art features a mother bear sheltering her cub as snow falls around them. Throughout the book, the striking, minimalist style of illustration seem well suited to the Arctic scenes. Despite the cold setting, the story generates its own warmth. While providing an appealing, simple introduction to polar bears, the book may also reassure young children that, like the cub, they will have the love and help they need as they grow to adulthood. A lovely picture book by a Colombian writer-illustrator.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2009 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Rueda's (Let's Play in the Forest) warm and fuzzy text offers an unexpected contrast to her cool Arctic spreads, suffused with a subtle feeling of wintry magic. "Am I a polar bear?" a cub fresh from its den asks its mother, who leads the cub through unremitting expanses of Arctic snow, water and ice. They are ghostly white shapes against pale pastel backgrounds, silhouettes without fur or modeling; only their outlines and some minimal shadowing distinguish them from the snow. A line or two per page slows the story to a gentle stroll. "Yes, little one," the mother answers. "You can walk on snow and melting ice, just like a polar bear. You smell seals from far away." When the cub is uncertain ("But I slip on melting ice, I can't catch a seal") its mother reassures: "Don't worry, little one, I will stay with you, and I will teach you what polar bears need to know." At the end of their journey, the mother polar bear curls herself around her baby, offering protection and security. A comforting bedtime story for youngest readers. Up to age 3. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-Rueda perfectly blends the story of a polar bear's love for her cub with primary facts about these animals. Implicitly environmental in the belief that people will protect what they understand, the story is sensitively told in dialogue format, with a strong undergirding of fact and observation. The cub wants to know for sure that it is a polar bear. Mother reassures her baby, and supports her claim by noting specific attributes on subsequent spreads: "Your feet are large and padded. You can walk on snow and melting ice, just like a polar bear. You smell seals from far away." Like the oversize text, the computer-enhanced illustrations in blues, whites, and grays are expansive and spare, giving children the space to feel the doubts and discoveries of the young animal. The cub's musings culminate in a silent, scary challenge to bound up a glacier during a snowstorm, illustrated without words, but clear in danger. Ultimately, the mother comforts the cub, telling it she will teach it everything polar bears need to know. Then the youngster realizes one thing: it is loved. Clothed in a quiet, thoughtful tone, an ode to a questioning disposition and scientific observation, this is a lovely introduction to the largest carnivore on land. Pair it with Lauren Thompson's outstanding Polar Bear Night (Scholastic, 2004).-Sara Paulson-Yarovoy, American Sign Language and English Lower School PS 347, New York City (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
