Bear takes a trip

PreS-Gr 1-Bear wakes up in the morning, packs his suitcase, and meets his friend at the train station for some fun up in the mountains. Children follow their journey out of town and through the countryside, until they reach their destination where they hike and sail. Even when it rains, they enjoy themselves. The time is illustrated digitally at the bottom of each spread; at the end of the book, the clocks show time in an analog format. The colorful illustrations in paint, pencil, ink, and crayons are bright, bold, and buzz with energy, and children will enjoy poring over the many details. With one or two sentences to a page, this book will serve armchair travelers and beginning readers alike.-Anne Beier, Hendrick Hudson Free Library, Montrose, NY (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

By bus and then train, Bear and his friend take one amazing vacation (Bear's Birthday, 2011, etc.). Rhyming couplets describe Bear's preparations and travels. His friend joins him at the railway station, and the day passes by as the buddies travel toward their mountaintop destination. Whimsical paint, pen-and-ink and crayon designs provide bold splashes of color as the locomotive snakes its way along the coast. The text conveys their trip in straightforward fashion. "At long last the journey comes to an end. / Bear has a cabin and so does his friend." The front endpapers provide an aerial map so children can see the progress of the journey. The book also tackles the concept of time throughout, and the concluding note offers a lengthy explanation that will sail over the heads of the board-book audience. A digital clock on the bottom right-hand corner of each spread tracks the schedule; analog clocks deftly placed within the pictures provide additional reinforcement. Adults will be astonished at how much these bears can do in just 10 1/2 hours. Pass the time with one of the stronger offerings in this series. (Board book. 1-4)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.