Stop Snoring, Bernard!

February 7, 2011
Bernard is a sweet, fuzzy fellow who sails around belly-up in his zoo's otter pool, but he snores during naptime—"Snore somewhere else, Bernard," says his fellow otter, Grumpy Giles—and he can't find a place to sleep that doesn't disturb his zoo mates. Gentle text and a low-key story line allow debut talent OHora to put lots of energy into his spreads. Half-naïf, half-funky acrylic paintings look a lot like woodblock prints; forms are simple, figures are cheerfully hatched and outlined with big black lines, and squared-off letters appear in big speech balloons. OHora has plenty of good ideas about how to use space. When Bernard tries sleeping in the zoo fountain, the giraffes who tell Bernard to stop snoring have necks so long that they exit the top of the page and re-enter on the opposite page. And when a huge alligator leaps out of the lake Bernard's sleeping in with a "STOP SNORING, BERNARD!" his open mouth, the mouths and tails of smaller alligators behind him, and Bernard's waving arms and legs set up a lovely visual rhythm. A promising debut. Ages 3–7.

March 1, 2011

Bernard has a problem: His persistent snoring keeps the other otters awake. When Grumpy Giles sends him packing, Bernard tries napping in the zoo's lake (with its croc denizens, who, fortunately, seem to be more interested in peace and quiet than in a nice otter snack), a fountain (where he annoys giraffes) and a puddle dominated by perturbed elephants. He manages a bit of shut-eye in a bat cave, but when the creatures throng back to roost after a night of hunting, Bernard trudges off once more, tearfully heading for the zoo exit. Illustrator OHora's debut features muscular acrylic-on-paper pictures in a palette of red, teal, brown, black and ochre. Wide black outlines and OHora's own display type add graphic pizzazz to spreads featuring charmingly depicted animals. The story of family acceptance is simple: The otters miss Bernard, search for him all night and welcome him back into the clan. As a story, it's a little thin, but the illustrations carry the day. The strong visuals and patterned text, with "Stop Snoring, Bernard!" a thrice-repeated refrain, add up to an inviting, pleasant read-aloud—irascible giraffe notwithstanding—for one-on-one or group sharing. An artist to watch. (Picture book. 3-6)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

March 1, 2011

PreS-K-This title puts forth a good effort with striking illustrations but falls short on plot. Bernard lives happily at the zoo with his otter friends, but his snoring is disturbing them. Grumpy Giles, who has had enough of the noise, tells him "to go snore somewhere else." Bernard tries sleeping in a waterfall, a lake, a puddle, and a cave. In each scenario, various other animals balk as well. Only the bats don't mind, because they're nocturnal. Soon the other otters beg Bernard to come home because they miss him, including Grumpy Giles. Acceptance is a beautiful thing, but Bernard still snores, resulting in a story without a resolution. Illustrations in muted acrylics are the real strength of this title, with details children will enjoy discovering. Otters wearing headgear and playing water polo are featured on the first page, while another is sporting a striped referee shirt. Bernard's sweet facial expressions create a cuddly and amicable character. Even Grumpy Giles's scrunched up expression is endearing. James Howe's Brontorina (Candlewick, 2010) and Candace Fleming's Clever Jack Takes the Cake (Random, 2010) tell a similar, but stronger story.-Anne Beier, Clifton Public Library, NJ

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2011
Preschool-G Bernard the otter enjoys an idyllic life at the zoo, especially napping. Unfortunately, when his loud and constant snoring ruins naptime for the other otters, he is banished. He tries sleeping in a lake, in a fountain, and in a cave, and in every location, the other animals berate him with the titular refrain. All seems lost until the otters see the error of their ways and discover how much they miss Bernard, snoring and all. Ohora sorts the story into a predictable pattern, alternating Bernards search for sleeping quarters with a different, frustrated animal family. His bright, flat paintings, saturated in a limited palette of red, teal, gold, gray, and black, convey depths of emotion in simple strokes and heavy outlines. Jaunty compositions, with animal characters busting out of the frames, makes for audacious humor, and hand-painted lettering signifying Bernards snoring and the animals admonitions adds visual zing. Young children will fall for Bernards over-the-top noisemaking and relish joining in with the quickly familiar phrase, Stop snoring, Bernard!(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)