Review by Booklist Review
Parents who struggle to get toddlers into bed will certainly appreciate poor Mama Bear's efforts to get Baby Bear ready to hibernate. Facts are seamlessly woven into the narrative as Baby runs through a litany of delay tactics he's hungry, he's thirsty, he can't get comfortable, he needs to say goodbye to the moose and he's definitely not sleepy. Once Mama explains that she's planning to sleep the winter away, but that wolves and other predators are not, Baby Bear is a little more agreeable towards a long winter nap. The humorous illustrations feature facial expressions that highlight the cub's continuing dissatisfaction and Mama's waning patience. Back matter provides resources, a guide to other hibernating animals, a quiz (Could You Hibernate like a Bear?), and an activity for building an indoor bear den. Mama wins in the end, of course, and readers come away with an appreciation for hibernation, which may or may not transfer over to human nap time.--Kathleen McBroom Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Baby Bear's mother must use a great deal of persuasion to get her child to hibernate.Best known for her nonfiction, it appears this award-winning author also has a knack for using simple, fictional stories to keep the attention of young readers while slyly delivering facts about nonhuman animals. Here, the many ploys children use to delay bedtime are used by Baby Bear to avoid hibernation. The first excuse is certainly recognizable: " But, Mama,' Baby Bear says. I'm hungry.' " Mama indulges her cub through several of his excuses while also explaining some other animals' winter habits and the reasons that a bear cub must hibernate. Vibrant colors show a northern woodland, bordered by a lake and mountains, that's rapidly changing from fall into winter. The two black bears are cartoonlike, walking on all fours but with anthropomorphized body language and facial expressions. One funny sequence of vignettes shows Baby Bear unsuccessfully trying to catch a fish. There is also a droll reference to "Goldilocks": When the bears finally settle in, Baby Bear complains, "This bed is too hard." Adding more leaves to the den floor is Mama Bear's last attempt to placate her whiny cub. His final excuse results in her roar of "ENOUGH!" in bold letters. After a humorous closing punchline, backmatter offers more facts and resources about hibernation as well as simple instructions for how a child can pretend to "den like a bear."A few facts, a lot of fun. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
