Abstract
Reviewed by: Bear and Bunny by Daniel Pinkwater Deborah Stevenson, Editor Pinkwater, Daniel Bear and Bunny; illus. by Will Hillenbrand. Candlewick, 2015 40p ISBN 978-0-7636-7153-2 $15.99 R 4-6 yrs In this follow up to Bear in Love (BCCB 9/12), Bear (who believes Bunny is also a bear) and Bunny (who believes Bear is also a bunny) are now fond friends, enthusiastically sharing stories of their individual adventures and together going through the forest singing. When Bunny suggests to Bear that they two might get a pet (“A pet is an animal you take care of and feed, and it loves you”), Bear can’t think of an animal that would be suitable. When the two happen on a frog on a high tree branch, they conclude it’s a kitty, rescue it from its perch, and happily make it their new pet. The gentle storytelling tone, with its affectionate dialogue between the friends, has a Milne-esque echo, and the unseen narrator’s witty but delicate take on the misunderstood-species joke (“It would be too hard to explain it to them. Besides, it doesn’t matter”) will tickle youngsters’ funnybones. The mixed-media art is sweet but not saccharine, balancing the rosy-cheeked cuddliness of the animal friends with more rugged textures in pencil hatching; the landscapes are an inviting blend of detail (the occasional foregrounded flower or precisely limned tree) and suggestion, with forest fading into mist behind the protagonists. The Bear/Bunny friendship continues to be weird and wonderful (a nice touch is that the two enjoy spending time apart as well as together), and audiences will enjoy being included in the warmth as the two widen their circle. Copyright © 2016 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
Published Version
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