When a treasured teddy bear becomes so worn that it is mistaken for a monkey, a little girl and her mother decide to restore Bear to "his good old self."
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Johnston's (It's About Dogs) ode to a much-loved teddy in desperate need of repair essentially divides into two distinct parts. "What a fine monkey," the grocer tells the young heroine when she brings her favorite toy shopping, not exactly the praise she's expecting. "Bear is so sad, he could cry. But his eyes are gone." So, unfortunately, is much of the rest of him ("I have told him so many secrets, his ears are gone. He has laughed at so many jokes, his mouth is gone," notes his owner). Mother adds that when bears start looking like monkeys, "It's high time to fix them." At this juncture, the story abruptly pivots from the girl's relationship to her toy to address readers directly with a step-by-step repair process ("Then what do you do?"). Johnston chronicles the makeover from stitching to shampooing to line-drying ("You stay while he dries/ and eat a sandwich and/ shoo the birds away--/ in case he looks like stuff/ for a nest"). Allen's (Mud Pie Annie) watercolor and colored pencil illustrations, with their soft shading and slightly smudged outlines, aid in connecting the two sections of the book and exude warmth. Ages 3-5.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
reS-Gr 1-Originally published in Great Britain, this story is reminiscent of The Velveteen Rabbit. A little girl loves the stuffing right out of Bear, who is there to celebrate the great days as well as to accompany her to bed on dark, rainy nights. When he is no longer recognizable, her mother repairs him. The illustrations mix pen and ink with watercolor and colored pencil, and are active and joyous. They depict a real child dancing about in pajamas, hair flying out of pigtails, projects scattered around her room. The text is active as well, sometimes swirling and curving on the page; colored words stand out from the rest of the text, giving emphasis to the child's feelings for the stuffed animal. However, the story itself is flawed. It begins with the youngster telling the story: "When I am in bed and it is dark-." Then, when her mother decides to mend the toy, the story suddenly changes to second-person narrative: "You close your eyes to remember how Bear was-." There seems to be no reason for this switch. Another confusion: the bear is shown as fairly new, then missing ears and stuffing within a few pages, without any real comment on the fact that time must be passing. Stronger titles about special bears include Don Freeman's Corduroy (Viking, 1968) and Jez Alborough's Where's My Teddy? (Candlewick, 1992).
Susan Marie Pitard, formerly at Weezie Library for Children, Nantucket Atheneum, MA
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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More About the Author
Joy Allen won her first art contest when she was in second grade and while in school, her homework was often doodled with pictures of her teachers and friends. Since then, she has illustrated over 50 books. Her newest books are PRINCESS PALOOZA and PRINCESS PARTY. Joy also designs fabric (even princess fabric!), AND, she now has princess ornaments on sale at www.joyallensjoybox.com. Some of Joy's most recent books are BABY SIGNS, (on Oprah's children recommended children's books), the CAM JANSEN series, and the ABIGAIL IRIS series. Her picture books include Karen Beaumont's BEING FRIENDS, TEN STINKY BABIES by Ellen Olson Brown, THE BOOK OF BOYS FOR GIRLS AND THE BOOK OF GIRLS FOR BOYS by David Greenberg, and THE HOUSE IN THE MIDDLE OF TOWN by Crystal Bowman. To learn more, visit Joy's website at www.joyallen.us or www.joyallensjoybox.com
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely adorable.,
This review is from: My Best Friend Bear (Hardcover)
My daughter has a bear that she loves so much that I would return 100 miles to retrieve. This book delightfully depicts this kind of love. My daughter's bear has been loved so much that his stuffing came out too. Any little girl with a favorite suffed animal will relate to this book. We have checked it out of the library so many times that I have just decided to buy it.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sweet, sweet story of a child's love for a teddy bear.,
By
This review is from: My Best Friend Bear (Hardcover)
Every child has a favorite stuffed animal that they have loved the stuffing right out of. This sweet story of a little girls love for her best friend, "Bear" will delight your children. Gentle, colorful illustrations complement the story. This is a book you and your child(ren), along with their "best friend" will want to read over and over again.
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