Tag: bears

  • Professor Goose Debunks Goldilocks and the Three Bears

    Professor Goose Debunks Goldilocks and the Three Bears

    Mother Goose’s fairy stories and nursery rhymes have been read and loved by generations and generations of children, but are now under the microscope of Professor Marie Curious Goose, the niece of Mother Goose.. She believes the wrongs in the stories need to be put right for a new, very curious, very fact checking generation of young readers.

    Naturally she chose Goldilocks and the Three Bears to begin her debunking. Of course, and as we all know, Bears simply cannot do as Mother Goose would have them do and so putting things to rights has now become a very interesting concept, one that involves a lot more than just imagination. It involves all the things Professor Goose is good at, Science, Technology, English and Maths.

    As each of the chapters is investigated for wrong facts which need to be researched and corrected, fun is had, jokes are created and agile young minds are sent off to explore other options to cold porridge, broken chairs, and exactly what Bears should be eating for a healthy breakfast!

    And let’s face it, if Goldilocks had paid a bit more attention to her science classes in school, or maybe used a GPS, she might not have become lost in the woods and the secret life of the Bear family may never have been discovered.

    Professor Goose Debunks Goldilocks and the Three Bears is a fun filled way to introduce the concept of science to young readers. For those interested in trying out some ‘engineering skills’, Professor Goose has very kindly created a chapter at the end of the book on how to build a chair for your Teddy Bear. What a terrific holiday project that could be.

  • These are Animals

    These are Animals

    In this impressive journey to the world of animals through the eyes of Daniel Egneus, there is a lot of fun to be discovered in and around the many animals that have somehow found their way onto the pages of this book.

    Aimed at the early reader, or little ones who love a good story with lots of noises attached, this is a beautiful way to introduce small children to a wide range of animals, where they live and noises they do make.

    Woodland animals are there with rabbits squeaking and racoons climbing, all while the woodpecker tap, tap taps away. When the Polar Regions are discovered there are some wonderful discussion points that can be built-in as to why Polar Bears have such large paws and Seals bark.

    Africa sees Elephants trumpeting and Giraffes with such long necks, Lions roooaring and Zebras showing off their stripes.

    Each of the pages is jammed full of colour to represent the animals and their traditional surroundings which can also add some additional layers to the storyboard.

    But there is so much noisy fun to be had, that by the time the end page is reached it will be time to head for bed or outside to practice some of the squeaking, roaring, sliding, hissing and squawking essential to a good story about animals.

  • Hug me, Please!

    Hug me, Please!

    Any day is a good day for a hug, but in this book, Little Bear and Daddy Bear excel themselves. In the morning when “The sun was still brushing its teeth”, they went for a walk. The aim of the walk at that time was to find some honey, which they soon found and devoured. They had such a warm feeling that they thought they would like to share it. Little Bear suggested they visit Mr Beaver, and give him a hug. Mr Beaver was quite startled, and asked why they wanted to hug him. “To brighten up your day”, said Little Bear. Hmmmm, it did feel quite nice.

     Little Bear wanted to know if Mr Beaver had enjoyed his hug, and his dad replied that you always feel good after a hug. Well, Little Bear wanted to find many more animals to hug and to share this warm feeling with. They met hares who shared a hug, and a Big Bad Wolf, who was looking for a little girl in a red hood. As the bears hugged the wolf the little girl slipped by, unnoticed. Next to be hugged was an anaconda that enjoyed the close contact very much. The hugging continued until the pair were almost home, then they realized that they had missed hugging someone very important!

     This gentle, hardback picture book is perfect for a quiet bedtime read. The text is well spaced and a good size for shared reading. Some of the illustrations are double spread, and many are a full page illustration, with a half page picture on the opposite page. The Illustrator has chosen muted colours to enhance the story, and humour is introduced in some pictures. The bear sitting in a bird’s nest hugging is charming. The many animals introduced are good for naming and recognition.

      It would be impossible to read this book without sharing a hug or two, or three!

  • Nothing Can Frighten a Bear

    Nothing Can Frighten a Bear

    Night time can be scary for the bravest of bears, but for baby bear all snuggled up warm, a loud noise in the middle of the night, causes him to wake the rest of the family. Baby Bear is sure there must be a monster about, but Father Bear says that if that is so, the whole family will go out looking for that monster. Father Bear takes a lantern, and the family, Mother Bear, Grace and Ben and Baby Bear, all follow along. As they walk along the path, Mother Bear gets caught in a tree, and nobody notices she is not there.

     The adventure continues to unfold, with Daddy laughing and saying, “Nothing can frighten a bear.” The humour of the situation begins to become apparent as the family wends its way through the forest, with the last in line dropping off. Baby Bear is really tired by now and wants to go back to bed. He and Dad notice that the other members of the family are missing, and fear the worst. The resolution is funny and all of the bears are reassured, and satisfied with the logical explanation.

     The gentle colours of the illustrations and the small creatures who peep out at the bears help to soften the anxiety that Baby Bear feels. The lantern casts a soft light over the scene, again soothing any worried feelings. Father Bear is seen sucking his thumb, but quickly regains his composure when the truth is revealed. The text rhymes, and the repeated phrase, “Nothing can frighten a bear,” is on nearly every page.  Small blocks of text are on each page, and words vary in size according to the ROAR.

     The humour in the text and illustrations will ensure that the reader understands that the scariest things are in the mind, not in the real world. As a large paper back picture book, this will be appreciated by members of the family who read, and those who are read to. There are many tiny details to peep at while waiting for the story to unfold.

     A very special bedtime book.