Grandma's Bears [Hardcover]

Gina Wilson (Author), Paul Howard (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 3 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Gina Wilson's endearing story and Paul Howard's warmly glowing illustrations are a snug and cozy treat for any child who has ever loved a bear.

Grandma shares her cottage with bears named Arthur, Aggie, Tumtum, and Floss, and tonight Nat is going to meet them for the first time. He's a little nervous, of course. "Are they fierce?" he asks Grandma. "Not when I'm around," she replies. And sure enough, Nat discovers that Grandma's bears are full of surprises! Just like him, they love having someone around to play with, bring treats, help with baths, read a story, and best of all, cuddle up for a good night's sleep.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2–Nat's grandma lives with a troupe of life-size bears, and not of the stuffed variety. It's the boy's first overnight visit to her cottage, and her assortment of bears seems to represent the fears or psychological barriers that young children must overcome when encountering new experiences independent of their parents. Nat meets a bear in the foyer who is upset by the rain and the mess it creates. The child soothes him with a clever hopping game. Similarly, Nat befriends Aggie, who is unhappy because she has soap in her eyes, and grumpy Tumtum, who is hiding under the table. After Grandma tucks Nat in at bedtime, and he thinks that he is alone, he is wonderfully surprised and comforted by a little cub. The story is accompanied by warm-toned, softened drawings that lend both a cozy and a vintage mood. These intimate domestic scenes, however, may not be sufficient to offset the alarm some readers might feel at the thought of staying in a house filled with large animals. Granted, the creatures are benign in their response to Nat, but the premise is unusual and children tend to be literal. While the boy ultimately does deal with his anxieties as symbolized by the bears, this still might not be the book to share with youngsters contemplating a first foray away from home.–Rosalyn Pierini, San Luis Obispo City-County Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

K-Gr. 2. Young Nat faces the prospect of an overnight at Grandma's with understandable anxiety because Grandma lives with a houseful of bears. But after teaching one bear a simple jumping game, sharing a box of doughnuts with another, dining in front of the TV with a third, and receiving an after-bath toweling from a fourth, the ice is thoroughly broken. Howard plays this unlikely scenario perfectly straight, placing child and motherly grandparent in a comfortably ordinary domestic setting shared with huge but very soft-looking bears of various sorts, all "bearing" slight but recognizable smiles. Nat's fear returns when the bedroom lights go out--but quickly disappears when a bear cub snuffles up from the foot of the bed for a cuddle. The story will delight young bear lovers, and Grandma's towering, gentle housemates make good stand-ins for new people or changes in a young child's life. John Peters
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (October 7, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763625183
• ISBN-13: 978-0763625184
• Product Dimensions: 11.9 x 8.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #673,894 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Book, May 16, 2007

By 

Elaine Wilbur - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Grandma's Bears (Hardcover)

This is an absolutely beautiful book. The pages are dense and turnable, the cover is illustrated in warm tones, the drawings in the book are cosy and inviting. Even the book has this oldy worldy cottage-y smell from the pages (or maybe I have an overactive imagination!)The story is not scary, even though it is about bears. I have just read it three times to my three year old. Highly recommend this book. I just came on to see about getting it for his grandma! It isn't too long, perfect length.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars nice book w/ great pictures, March 27, 2007

By 

Animal Luvr - See all my reviews

This review is from: Grandma's Bears (Hardcover)

Cute little story in this book that is a good size book. I don't see it as a scary book for kids. Good illustrations too.

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite little boy book, July 8, 2008

By 

Everett's Mom (Denver, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Grandma's Bears (Hardcover)

This is my absolute favorite book for a young boy. I bought it for my son when he was three. Two years later we have read it hundreds of times. The story is imaginative and the illustrations are beautiful.