Title: More Bears!
Author: Kenn Nesbitt
Illustrator: Troy Cummings
Published: Sourcebooks – jabberwocky, 2010

Lily and I were at the library today. We were supposed to pick up three books I’d put on hold. Simple, quick in-and-out kinda visit.

Long story short, we left with seventeen books.

Fourteen more than we had intended. But whatever! The extras were all from the children’s section and they’re all pretty darn terrific (okay, some more than others…but we’ll get to them all in good time). Today’s review is of a book I chose based purely on two things:

1. The cover art.
2. The fact that it’s about bears.

Yes, I literally judged this book’s worthiness by its cover. But I was right! It’s a good one!

If you’ve done any kind of reading of children’s stories, you know that bears are *pretty* popular characters. They’re funny and goofy and lumbering and just kind of fun to draw.

In this specific story, the author is just trying to write a book that includes exactly zero bears. None. Nada. Zilch. No bears required, thankyouverymuch.

And that seems to be a solid plan, except…some kids keep yelling “MORE BEARS!” over and over and, well, eventually the author caves and adds just one bear (give the audience what they want, right?).

But…the kids STILL want “MORE BEARS!” so the author adds one more. And then another…and another…and…well, a lot of bears, really.

The thing is, the bears get grumpy because the book is over-crowded. And that makes the author rather displeased. And what do authors do when they’re upset? Rewrite, peeps. Rewrite all night.

So, away go the bears! Ah, everything is perfect.

Until, of course, the kids decide that maybe the story just needs more chickens.

I read this book aloud to the entire family, so I have reviews from all four of us! Here’s what we thought:

Vivi: I really like the art. It’s colourful and fun to look at. Also, the story is hilarious. All books are better with the addition of bears!

Lily: I like the part where the kids yell “MORE CHICKENS!” at the end. Maybe that will be the next book the author writes!

Daddy: It’s kind of a one-joke book, but it’s done really well.

Mama: I like the fact that the author is a character in the book. The rewrite part was accurate. Also, bears. So many bears. Have I mentioned that I have a soft spot for bear books? This book is also a lot of fun to read aloud. Bonus points for that!

Read this book – it’s un-bear-ably funny! (Sorry, I had to.)

Overall grade: 5/5 bears…plus a couple of chickens for good luck.