Another Celebrated Dancing Bear (Charles Scribner's Sons Books for Young Readers) [Hardcover]

Gladys Scheffrin-Falk (Author), Barbara Garrison (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Series: Charles Scribner's Sons Books for Young Readers

Boris receives dancing lessons from his friend Max, a dancing bear with the Moscow Circus.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A "heavy-footed brown bear whose heart is soft as butter," Boris is unhappily employed at the animal hospital. When he sees an ornate poster announcing that his friend Max, "the celebrated dancing bear," is about to tour St. Petersburg, his discontent overwhelms him and he can't control his tears, even as he bravely struggles to congratulate Boris. But Boris, too, is soft-hearted, and he sets about teaching Max to dance. Scheffrin-Falk's first picture book gracefully confronts jealousy, self-doubt (Max "felt a little foolish. Dancing lessons at his age!"), the value of persistence and the power of friendship. Garrison's etchings, framed like snapshots and hand-colored to highlight certain objects (a sash, a jacket, a flower) against sepia-like backgrounds, infuse the volume with the feel of an antique scrapbook. This old-world flavor further enhances the nostalgic imperial Russian setting, replete with samovars, graduated Russian peasant dolls (here shaped like bears) and distant spires. Ages 5-7.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 1-- Set in Czarist Russia, Another Celebrated Dancing Bear is the story of a friendship between elegant Max, a famous dancer with the Moscow Circus, and simple Boris, who works at a local animal hospital. When Max learns of Boris's unhappiness with his job and envy of Max's fame, he resolves to teach his friend to dance. After many weeks of lessons and practice, Boris is able to join the Moscow Circus. Garrison's warm etchings printed in burnt-umber ink and highlighted with watercolor washes capture the setting and period, giving a flavor of antiquity. They help transport children to another place and time to experience some of the caring and sharing in the relationship of two rather special bears.
- Barbara B. Murphy, Shaler Area School District Libraries, Pittsburgh, PA
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 26 pages
• Publisher: Atheneum; 1st edition (April 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684191644
• ISBN-13: 978-0684191645
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,049,330 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Friendship, Sharing, and Self-Esteem, July 19, 2008

By 

homeschooler (Indianapolis) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Another Celebrated Dancing Bear (Hardcover)

This book, suggested in the Five in a Row curriculum, is a very sweet story about two bears who share friendship, encouragement, tea, and a love for dancing. Set in Russia, with a samovar and all, one bear encourages and helps his friend follow his dream. While Boris could choose to be jealous of Max's dancing and feel sorry for himself that he could never learn or succeed, he instead takes a leap of faith and allows Max to mentor him. A great book when learning about Russia...read over a cup of tea (Russian if you can) and Russian tea cookies and follow with a recording or DVD of Tchaikovsky.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Dull, November 17, 2011

By 

Kristi Horn (Lake Stevens, WA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Another Celebrated Dancing Bear (Hardcover)

We are using this book as part of the Five In A Row curriculum. It was the first book that didn't connect in any way with my kids (7 & 6). The pictures bored them and the story, while very nice, just didn't hold their interest. Everything in the book is basically the same color and looked drab, even to me. It was the first book we didn't like and will probably not pick up again.

I still give it three stars because there are some good things to learn from it and its a sweet story. But as a "living book" it fell flat, in our opinion :)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for discussion with your kids, November 19, 2009

By 

Tammie L. Lacross (Lake Leelanau, MI) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Another Celebrated Dancing Bear (Hardcover)

You can enjoy reading this book with your kids and then talk about what it means to help a friend and putting effort into doing something you really want to do.