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HUSH UP & HIBERNATE

A few facts, a lot of fun.

Baby Bear’s mother must use a great deal of persuasion to get her child to hibernate.

Best known for her nonfiction, it appears this award-winning author also has a knack for using simple, fictional stories to keep the attention of young readers while slyly delivering facts about nonhuman animals. Here, the many ploys children use to delay bedtime are used by Baby Bear to avoid hibernation. The first excuse is certainly recognizable: “ ‘But, Mama,’ Baby Bear says. ‘I’m hungry.’ ” Mama indulges her cub through several of his excuses while also explaining some other animals’ winter habits and the reasons that a bear cub must hibernate. Vibrant colors show a northern woodland, bordered by a lake and mountains, that’s rapidly changing from fall into winter. The two black bears are cartoonlike, walking on all fours but with anthropomorphized body language and facial expressions. One funny sequence of vignettes shows Baby Bear unsuccessfully trying to catch a fish. There is also a droll reference to “Goldilocks”: When the bears finally settle in, Baby Bear complains, “This bed is too hard.” Adding more leaves to the den floor is Mama Bear’s last attempt to placate her whiny cub. His final excuse results in her roar of “ENOUGH!” in bold letters. After a humorous closing punchline, backmatter offers more facts and resources about hibernation as well as simple instructions for how a child can pretend to “den like a bear.”

A few facts, a lot of fun. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-943978-36-6

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Persnickety Press

Review Posted Online: May 22, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018

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THE WILD ROBOT ON THE ISLAND

A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.

What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?

“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.

A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: June 24, 2025

ISBN: 9780316669467

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025

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HEY, DUCK!

A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together.

A clueless duckling tries to make a new friend.

He is confused by this peculiar-looking duck, who has a long tail, doesn’t waddle and likes to be alone. No matter how explicitly the creature denies he is a duck and announces that he is a cat, the duckling refuses to acknowledge the facts.  When this creature expresses complete lack of interest in playing puddle stomp, the little ducking goes off and plays on his own. But the cat is not without remorse for rejecting an offered friendship. Of course it all ends happily, with the two new friends enjoying each other’s company. Bramsen employs brief sentences and the simplest of rhymes to tell this slight tale. The two heroes are meticulously drawn with endearing, expressive faces and body language, and their feathers and fur appear textured and touchable. Even the detailed tree bark and grass seem three-dimensional. There are single- and double-page spreads, panels surrounded by white space and circular and oval frames, all in a variety of eye-pleasing juxtapositions. While the initial appeal is solidly visual, young readers will get the gentle message that friendship is not something to take for granted but is to be embraced with open arms—or paws and webbed feet.

A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2013

ISBN: 978-0-375-86990-7

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012

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