Where's Bear?

February 1, 2016

PreS-K-The friends from Bear & Hare Go Fishing and Bear & Hare: Snow! (both S. & S., 2015) are back, this time in a domestic setting, playing hide-and-seek in the house. Bear takes a turn hiding but isn't very good at it, so Hare hides while Bear seeks. Bear isn't very good at seeking, either. While looking for Hare under a blanket, Bear crawls into bed and falls asleep. Tired of waiting to be found, the frantic Hare tries to find Bear but fails to look under the blanket. Frustrated, Hare bellows, "I WANT BEAR!" and is reunited with his ursine companion. As in other "Bear & Hare" adventures, the text is spare and simple, making Gravett's winsome illustrations in pencil, watercolors, and wax crayon stand out on the ample white backgrounds. Bear and Hare's colorfully painted countdown numbers one through 10 dance across the spreads. In characteristic Gravett fashion, there's plenty of quiet humor in the expressive pictures, such as Bear trying to hide behind a lamp or looking for Hare in a teapot. VERDICT A sweet story for the youngest readers, who will relate to the joys and frustrations of hide-and-seek.-Yelena Alekseyeva-Popova, formerly at Chappaqua Library, NY

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