Polar bear postman

Milk the polar bear, postmaster at the Polar Bear Post Office, faithfully delivers the mail every day. One day he gets a letter addressed to him: the Red-Crowned Cranes in district one have lost their baby chick and need his help! Milk travels the countryside asking all the animals if they have seen the chick. Seasons pass, and when a postcard arrives from different Red-Crowned Cranes asking Milk to find the parents of a baby crane they found the previous spring, Milk is overjoyed. This story is not only sweet but culturally fascinating, introducing animals native to Japan, such as the Siberian chipmunk, sika deer, and Blakiston's fish owl. The artwork is memorable, depicting the animals with broad paint strokes and muted nature colors atop bold, almost blinding, sherbet-colored backgrounds (rosy pink, deep grape, neon yellow-green). Inspired by a real-life polar bear at a Hokkaido zoo who walks on his hind legs, this is a simply told tale ofpersistence, community service, and family bonds.--Worthington, Becca Copyright 2017 Booklist

Japanese artist Kijima sends a polar bear postmaster across rural Japan in search of a red-crowned crane chick who has been separated from his parents. "We searched as soon as we realized he was missing, but we couldn't find him," they explain in a postcard. "Please help us, Mr. Milk." The first animals Milk visits are scary predators, a red fox and a white-tailed eagle who attest to not having eaten the chick (much as they might have liked to). But the sequence softens as Milk canvasses other creatures native to northern Japan: a Siberian chipmunk, some sika deer, and a Blakiston's fish owl. Kijima outlines his figures with rough and bold black lines, and uses soft strokes of color to fill them in, giving the spreads a childlike feel. It's lots of fun watching the postal bear stamp pieces of mail at his desk and pedal his delivery bike through small villages; delicate silhouettes of plants and flowers offer contrast. Spring turns into summer, and Milk receives another postcard that solves the mystery-a satisfying conclusion to this exploration of nature. Ages 5-7. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.