I AM (NOT) SCARED

What can scare two bears?

The two bear buddies from You Are (Not) Small (2014) and That’s (Not) Mine (2015) return for another adventure. Big brown bear and small purple bear engage in a face-to-face dialogue about fears and bravery. Observant readers will soon find visual clues as to what exactly the object of their concern is: a roller coaster. Perhaps other things are more scary, say the bears, such as a “pan of fried ants!” No…it is the roller coaster, they agree—“With a SNAKE!” A truly wild and terrifying ride for the three (two bears plus one snake) follows, and their facial expressions perfectly reveal the very satisfying results (for two bears minus one snake, who is clearly already a roller-coaster aficionado) of the first ride: a second. Short, declarative sentences and a large font on white space make this both an entertaining read-aloud and read-alone for emerging readers. Weyant’s art, rendered in ink and watercolor, is appealing and makes excellent use of the large space.

A deft foray into facing fears and overcoming them—told with both understanding and humor.