Ant Plays Bear (Easy-to-Read,Viking) [Hardcover]

Betsy Byars (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 6 and up | Series: Easy-to-Read,Viking

In this delightful follow-up to "My Brother, Ant", the irrepressible Ant comes face to face with a growling bear-brother, reveals what he wants to be when he grows up, and convinces his older brother to investigate a mysterious tapping on their bedroom window. Full color.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-2?Children who enjoyed My Brother Ant (Viking, 1996) will welcome the return of these two likable siblings. The tender, easy-to-read stories double as touching vignettes about the nuances of older/younger brother relationships. While Ant is sometimes a pest, his big brother always indulges him. When Ant wants to play bear, he becomes frightened by the older boy's realistic growls, until he is assured that the noises are not really coming from an animal. Ant is bothered by a noise at the window until he is shown that it is only the tapping of a tree. In the final story, the siblings discover that they are going to be the exact same thing when they grow up?men! Beginning readers will appreciate the subtleties underneath the simplicity of the stories. Simont's understated illustrations are perfect companions to Byars's text; they reinforce the action and hint at the underlying affection between the two boys despite Ant's sometimes trying antics. A deserving purchase.?Christy Norris, Valley Cottage Library, NY
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

An enchanting companion to My Brother Ant (1996). Little brother Anthony, known as Ant, wants his big brother--the narrator--to be a bear. The narrator plays the part so well that Ant becomes a little worried, and decides to end the game. In the second story, Ant wants to be a dog when his brother's new friend comes to visit, but becomes a boy when he finds out that the friend is capable of playing mean tricks on dogs. Third, Ant wants an explanation for the tap-tap-tapping on the bedroom window. Best of all, though, is the last story, in which Ant discovers what he wants to be when he grows up. In very short chapters, the love and exasperation common between siblings and the sweet thrill of everyday life are laid out for beginning readers who are sure to be delighted. The language is perfectly transparent, plain but full of feeling, and the illustrations, for all their artful simplicity, glow with universal appeal. Byars and Simont prove that within the closest of strictures--the easy-to-read format--brilliance can be achieved. (Fiction. 6-9) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Viking Juvenile (July 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670867764
• ISBN-13: 978-0670867769
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,210,684 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Betsy Byars began her writing career rather late in life First, she married and started a family. The writing career didn't emerge until she was 28, a mother of two children, and living in a small place she called the barracks apartment, in Urbana, Illinois. She and her husband, Ed, had moved there in 1956 so he could attend graduate school at the University of Illinois. She was bored, had no friends, and so turned to writing to fill her time. Byars started writing articles for The Saturday Evening Post, Look,and other magazines. As her family grew and her children started to read, she began to write books for young people and, fortunately for her readers, discovered that there was more to being a writer than sitting in front of a typewriter. "Once a wanderer came by my house and showed me how to brush my teeth with a cherry twig; that went in The House of WingsThe Summer of the Swans." Since that time, Byars has written more than 45 books for young readers and has won numerous awards, including The American Book Award, which she received in 1981 for The Night Swimmers. The humor, compassion, and insight Byars brings to each of her books won her a large audience of admirers both in the United States and abroad. Six of her novels were presented on national television, and her books are translated into nine languages. Six of Byars' novels have been named ALA Notable Books, and in 1971, The Summer of the Swans -- a story about a 14-year-old girl and her mentally retarded brother -- won the Newbery Award as the most distinguished contribution to literature for children in the year of its publication. Byars was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, on August 7, 1928. Unlike many of the characters in her books, Byars grew up in a normal, loving family. Her father was an engineer and worked as a bookkeeper in a cotton mill. He was stern and hardworking and had a strong sense of humor. Her mother was a lively woman who loved acting and music. Byars's sister, Nancy, two years older, was sometimes an inspiration and sometimes an evil nemesis. Byars has always been adventurous and never allows a few setbacks to prevent her from doing things she wants to experience, like petting a blacksnake and flying planes. The snake was named Moon and became the subject of her 1991 autobiography, The Moon and I. Betsy Byars and her husband live on an air strip in South Carolina, and have traveled widely throughout the United States in pursuit of their interest in gliding and antique airplanes. They have four grown children and seven grandchildren.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars ..., October 6, 2008

By 

Backroads "Scatter-brained book fan" (Cache Valley, Utah) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Ant Plays Bear (Easy-to-Read, Puffin) (Paperback)

Ant is a little boy who never ceases to annoy his brother. In the first story, Ant insists his brother play bear with him. In the second, Ant pretends to be a dog, which aggravates everyone until the brother plays fetch with him. Ant finds this rude and stops the dog act. In the last story, And decides that he wants to be a man when he grows up.

To my surprise, this book actually made me laugh. The relationship between the two brothers is hilarious and adorable, and any older sibling could relate to the elder brother's plight. The three stories are short and easy to read, and the first-person point of view is kind of fun for a picture book.