Solar Bear

by Beth Ferry, Brendan Wenzel (Illustrator)

Overview

An empowering picture book from New York Times bestselling author Beth Ferry (Stick and Stone) and Caldecott Honoree Brendan Wenzel (They All Saw a Cat) told with lyrical text and luminous illustrations.

Journey with a solar bear who shines a light on the endangered species around the world and join the cause with your own mighty roar in this hopeful love letter to planet Earth and those who inhabit it.

The Earth is ours.

Yours and mine.

So dare to care.

To glow. To shine.

'Cause if you would,

and when you did,

then you will be a solar kid.

"Ferry and Wenzel strive here to build awareness...movingly illustrating the emptiness that would be felt on the planet without creatures like pangolins, rhinos, manatees, and sea turtles. The call to action—'we'll ask you for your mighty roar, to show us we are worth fighting for'—is aided considerably by the warm, stirring artwork, which invites children to reflect on the human causes of wildlife extinction and encourages them to work together for a better future."-—ALA Booklist (starred review)

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063251731
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/19/2024
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	369,036
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 10.80(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Beth Ferry is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous picture books, including Stick and Stone, The Scarecrow, and The Nice Dream Truck. She lives with her family by the beach in New Jersey, where she finds inspiration in the salty air.

Brendan Wenzel is an illustrator with a great affection for trees and all the furry, feathered, and scaly things that you can find in them (including snakes!). He has traveled to jungles, savannas, and everything in between in search of fascinating animals and has teamed up with many groups working to preserve wild places and creatures around the world. Brendan is the illustrator of Angela DiTerlizzi's Some Bugs. Brendan lives in New York with his wife, Magdalena.

Editorial Reviews

Ferry and Wenzel strive here to build awareness...movingly illustrating the emptiness that would be felt on the planet without creatures like pangolins, rhinos, manatees, and sea turtles. The call to action—"we'll ask you for your mighty roar, to show us we are worth fighting for"—is aided considerably by the warm, stirring artwork, which invites children to reflect on the human causes of wildlife extinction and encourages them to work together for a better future. — Booklist (starred review)

A [passionate and urgent] creature-voiced work that asks readers “for your mighty roar/ to show us we’re worth fighting for.”  — Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

2024-01-05
A polar bear, infused with sunlight, describes its plight to young listeners.

How exactly the “solar” bear came to shine is never explained, but Wenzel’s luminescent beast does indeed glow against midnight blue backgrounds. Soon the bear is joined by similarly lit (all-white) orcas, chimpanzees, bees, and other creatures, gliding and floating across city streets, to “show you that our paths are linked— / as you expand, we go extinct. // We’ll shine so brightly that you’ll see / that change is a necessity.” At this moment, the scenes shift from night to day, and the illuminated animals blend in more with the light-drenched landscape—an indeterminate biome comprising beaches, forests, and cliffs. Children who are diverse in terms of skin tone and hairstyle—some of them have been observing the parade of wildlife throughout—are seen planting a garden, each becoming “a solar kid.” Ferry doesn’t explain how gardening and extinction are related. Wenzel has some eye-catching digital compositions that incorporate sequential panels and a diaphanous, curving blanket of snow at the conclusion, but they aren’t enough to rescue a singsong-y, message-heavy text that doesn’t add much to the topic of climate change.

The shelf on environmental activism is crowded; this one doesn’t stand out. (information on endangered animals, resources, author’s and illustrator’s notes) (Picture book. 4-6)

Kirkus Reviews