Customer Reviews

Merry Christmas: Big Hungry Bear!

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a HUGE fan of "The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear," I was delighted to discover the Woods have teamed up to write and illustrate "Merry Christmas, BIG HUNGRY BEAR!"

Several weeks ago I stopped at my local bookstore for one of my monthly visits, and while perusing the "New and Notable" section I recognized the illustrated mouse standing among a pile of Christmas packages. I snatched the book off the shelf faster than I could read the title, and immediately became engrossed! As in the first book, the illustrations in "Merry Christmas BIG HUNGRY BEAR!" are OUTSTANDING, in addition, the Woods have maintained the same cleaver writing style with the reader narrating the story. Children of all ages will enjoy this delightful Christmas tale about sharing and caring among unlikely friends.

The story actually begins on the title page; the beautifully illustrated two-page spread shows Little Mouse returning home with a sled full of packages. He lives in a hollow tree somewhere cold, because it has recently snowed and he's wearing a red coat with cap, and black snow boots. The narration begins on the next page, "Hello, little Mouse. I see you're ready for Christmas." The mouse, now tucked away in his cozy, little home is placing presents around a brilliantly decorated Christmas tree that's already loaded with gifts.

Turn the page, "My goodness! What a lot of presents. Are they all for you?" Now we see a proud little mouse presenting his mountain of gifts to the reader. Over the next few pages the narrator (that's you) reminds the Little Mouse about the Big, Hungry Bear who's all alone in the dark cave at the top of the hill. Little Mouse boards up his door, padlocks the gifts and places tacks all over the floor in an attempt to protect his belongings. Then, the mouse hears that the Big, Hungry Bear cries every Christmas because he never receives Christmas presents, not even from Santa Claus. Little Mouse is sad for his lonely neighbor, and decides to share Christmas with the Big, Hungry Bear. Much to Mouse's surprise the Big, Hungry Bear reciprocates the sentiment.

The very talented husband and wife team have done it again! This enchanting Christmas tale will have you immediately hooked on this adorable little mouse and his unlikely friend. The illustrations are very expressive for easy comprehension, and the melodic text captivates even the youngest listener. This hardbound book measures approximately 10" x 10" x 1½" and contains 40 beautifully rendered pages. One-year and up.

If you are looking for a nice Christmas-y story to read to your pre-schooler, you couldn't do better than this one. The message is one of joy and sharing, even between little mouse and Big Hungry Bear.

If you are also a fan of the Woods' book, "The Little Mouse, the Big Hungry Bear, and the Red Ripe Strawberry" you will again be charmed by the Woods' animated and detailed drawings and happy-ending story in this sequel.

The little mouse lives in a mousehole furnished down to the last detail: there's a Christmas tree, loaves of bred in the kitchen, and a big stack of tacks by the door in case the Big Hungry Bear comes to steal the mouse's Christmas presents. But the mouse has a change of heart when he realizes the Big Hungry Bear never gets any presents of his own.

There's JUST the right amount of text per page to keep the story flowing, there's JUST the right blend of detail, sweetness, and humor in the drawings, there's JUST the right amount of excitement for, say, a 2 to 4 year old (it's not quite scary because the bear is never depicted, and actually proves to be a good and generous friend to the mouse).

For fans of the "Strawberry" book, note the strawberry-shaped bookends over the mouse's bed on the last page of the book. It's that kind of thoughtful touch that makes the Woods' books so great.

We meet the liitle mouse again (first book is The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear) This time the little mouse finds the big hunger bear has no friends and no presents on christmas. The little mouse dresses as Santa and brings gifts to the big hungry bear. This a wonderfully delightful book. The pictures are so beautiful. This a great book!

"Hello, little Mouse. I see you're ready for Christmas..." And so he is in his warm and cozy home surrounded by colorful garlands, brightly wrapped presents, and a beautifully decorated Christmas tree. The unseen narrator continues his patter: "But, little Mouse, what about the big, hungry Bear in the cold, dark cave at the top of the hill? Ohhh, how that Bear loves Christmas presents!" Now little Mouse is worried. He knows that big, hungry Bear never gets any gifts, not even from Santa, and would do just about anything to get Christmas presents. So he goes to work barricading and booby-trapping his home to protect his wonderful stash. But then he thinks about that big, hungry Bear, all alone in his cold, dark cave, and he has a change of heart..... Don and Audrey Wood bring back one of their most endearing characters in this captivating holiday sequel to their classic, The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, And The Big Hungry Bear. Their simple, spare text is charming and engaging, but the real story is told in the vibrant and expressive illustrations. Each two page spread is filled with dazzling color, playful humor, and vivid, eye-catching detail. Together word and art ring in the holiday season with the joy of sharing and friendship. Perfect for preschoolers, Merry Christmas, Big Hungry Bear! is a heartwarming, fun-filled romp that shouldn't be missed.

Merry Christmas Big Hungry Bear is a wonderful book to share with children from preschool age to 2nd grade. The author wrote this story using a 3rd person narrative. Throughout this story the main character, the mouse, responds to what the narrator says. The mouse does not speak, but the illustrations vivdly explain how the mouse responds to the narrator. Great suspense is built as you progress through the story, waiting to see that big, hungry bear and what he might do to the little mouse. This story is wonderfully crafted to appeal to little ones! Little children can easily identify with the mouse and delight in the mystery of the big, hungry bear. This is a perfect book to share at the holiday season because of its focus on sharing. This book can lead to some great discussions with children on how it feels to receive a present and to give presents to others. This book can serve as a good introduction for sharing and donation activities you can do with kids. It is also good to use to start discussing prejudice with kids. You can talk about what the mouse and the children thought about the bear as the story was being read and why the end of the story is a surprise. You can extend this with activites to help children understand how important it is to get to know someone before you judge what they are like. The illustrations in this story are surpurb. They engage the children from beginning to end. The illustrations help tell the story; they are the mouse's voice. The mouse never speaks but you know how he is feeling and how he responds throughout the story because of the illustrations. The illustrations lend themselves to great discussion about what is happening in the story and can be used to ask kids their predictions about what might happen next. Overall, this is an excellent story to share with children!

This delightful story about a sweet mouse involves the reader as the catalyst of information that drives the story. It offers many opportunities for vocabulary enrichment and reader/child interaction. My 2 year old grandson loves this story and wants it read to him over and over again. Beautifully written and illustrated!

This book is really cool! It was funny too, especially when the mouse cried. Our favorite parts were when the mouse shared his presents and when the big hungry bear gave the mouse the big present. We liked the colorful illustrations. This is a great book to give to a friend.

We thought the book was great! Our favorite part was when the mouse gave all of his presents to the Big Hungry Bear. The book was full of colorful pictures. Our favorite pictures were when the mouse was guarding all of his presents and when he dresses like Santa Claus. You should definitely buy this book.

Just as good as the first! My kids love this new one as well as the first. The illustrations are the best, such detail. Helps bring the story to life.

My daughter loves The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear. She also loves Christmas books so this was a great combination. The illustrations, as with all the Wood's books, doesn't disapoint. The story is short, but lots of room for imagination.