Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* As a reddish-golden plorringe ripens on the tree, a big brown bear named Norris lounges beneath, waiting for the luscious fruit to drop. Meanwhile, from above, rascally Tulip and Violet, a raccoon and mouse, also have their eyes on the prize: It smelled of honey and sunny days. After they hug the fruit as soft as cotton candy, it falls and plops onto Norris' head. Norris, being a wise bear, knows to share the fruit and makes two new friends in the process: From then on they shared everything. The characters are depicted with large swathes of color, which look almost abstract close up but feel perfectly organized when seen from farther away. The colors nearly pop off the white pages, and Rayner conveys plenty of swift and graceful movement in what initially look to be simple illustrations. Set in a honey-colored type, the text nearly disappears; this is a shortcoming, though it does prove the worthiness of the art the book works almost as well wordless. Pair this with other bear-sharing stories, like Karma Wilson's Bear Snores On (2002), Suzanne Bloom's A Splendid Friend, Indeed (2005), and Norbert Landa's Sorry! (2009).--Enos, Randall Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"[B]eing a wise bear, Norris knew that plorringes were the best fruit of all." Norris also knows that good things are worth waiting for, so he rests under the plorringe tree in the perfect spot to acquire the globular fruit when it falls. But Norris isn't the only one with an interest in the juicy treat: mouse Violet and raccoon Tulip scamper up the plorringe tree. They sniff, listen to, and hug the plorringe, and they are about to have a lick when it falls off the tree, landing with a "whomp!" on Norris's head. Readers who recognize Norris's teddy bear nature in his pensive gaze and lumbering snooze beneath the tree won't be surprised when, without hesitation, he carefully doles out sections of the "delicious, sun-kissed, soft-as-cotton-candy plorringe" to Violet and Tulip ("Norris was wise. And he was also kind"), who become his friends. Rayner's scraggly ink-outlined animals, colored with bold blocks of paint, easily communicate a traveled but salient lesson about patience and generosity-although readers may be dismayed to find no plorringes in stock at the grocery store. Ages 3-5. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Reminiscent of fellow bear Pooh's love for honey is Norris's love for plorringes. For that "sun-kissed, soft-as-cotton candy" delicacy, he patiently waits under the plorringe tree for the fruit to ripen. Tulip the raccoon and Violet the mouse, far less serene, wait on a branch. Soon the two reach out to touch the fruit and to take a lick, and "WHOMP!"-the luscious treat wallops Norris on the head. "The plorringe was his!" Here, readers will roar with mirth. The silkscreened tree and its leaves anchor the wispiness of the watercolor and India ink creatures done in layers of broad brushstokes against white backgrounds. The varied and inventive spreads show animals with an array of emotions, as well as movement toward camaraderie. Norris is wise, but "he was also kind." The last illustration is on a single page: having shared the plorringe, Norris, Tulip, and Violet sit so close that they appear to be one unit-friends. This is an exquisite choice for storytimes.-Sara Lissa Paulson, American Sign Language and English Lower School PS 347, New York City (c) Copyright 2011. 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.
Review by Horn Book Review
Bear Norris knows that good things--like delicious "plorringes"--come to those who wait, but Tulip and Violet also want a taste of the just-ripened fruit. Norris is as generous as he is patient, and the three become fast friends. Rayner's illustrations bolster the spare text; energetic lines and blocks of luminous color surrounded by white space allow for great expressiveness and use of perspective. (c) Copyright 2011. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
