Oh NO, BEAR! is a wonderfully illustrated, very amusing story about friendship. Bear is getting ready to hibernate and having enough to eat is an important part of his preparations. Luckily his friends are getting their winter food stores ready but they aren’t prepared for just how hungry Bear is. This wonderful woodland story is the perfect picture book to read in autumn.
The Story: Bear wakes up hungry and is distracted by a delicious smell wafting through the forest. He follows the smell and finds Rabbit and her friends digging up carrots. She invites him to try one but they’re so tasty he eats them all. The same thing happens with Squirrel’s acorns and Beaver’s fish. Bear wonders if his friends are angry but doesn’t realised that he has actually helped them. So when he returns home and has a problem they are there for him too…
Bear and his friends are adorable, we love their outfits and the rabbits are particularly cute. They are happy to share food but when Bear takes advantage of their generosity children can join in with the repetitive refrain ‘OH NO, BEAR!’ The ending is really heartwarming and we love the final spread showing Bear tucked up in bed for the winter with food from his friends.
Joanne Partis’ illustrations are adorable and there is so much humour in the pictures, we particularly love the map showing Bear following the delicious smells. The animals have wonderful outfits, we love Bear’s yellow raincoat, Beaver’s lumberjack jacket and everybody wears very cute boots!
Important parts of the story where Bear helps his friends are shown in the pictures rather than referred to in the text. This adds to the amusement and gives the reader a sense of knowing something that he doesn’t!
This is a great book to stimulate discussion about friendship and also hibernation. Children can research and talk about other animals that hibernate and how they prepare themselves for their long winter sleep. It can also initiate conversation about animal diets and the kinds of food that different animals eat.
We love this beautifully illustrated adorable story with its cast of woodland characters. Sleep well Bear!
Author / Illustrator: Joanne Partis
Thank you to Little Tiger Press for sending a copy of this fabulous book. We’d love to see Bear and his friends in another story.
More Bear Books that we love on Pinterest
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