The Bears Shared

by Kim Norman, David Walker (Illustrator)

Overview

A rollicking picture book that celebrates finding warmth and shelter during a springtime storm.

This is the lair the bears shared.
This is the hair that came from the lair the bears shared.
This is the bird that borrowed the hair to build a nest in a tall, tall tree with branches that thrashed in thunder that crashed . . .
and the story of how animals find home and family among it all!

With rhythmic text by Kim Norman and adorable artwork by David Walker, The Bears Shared is a great read-aloud for animal lovers, nature enthusiasts, and children and grown-ups with love to share.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780374389048
Publisher:	Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date:	01/10/2023
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	1,082,044
Product dimensions:	9.35(w) x 9.30(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	3 - 6 Years

About the Author

Kim Norman is the author of more than a dozen picture books, including The Ghosts Went Floating, Come Next Season, Ten on the Sled, and The Bot That Scott Built. Her books have been widely translated and have earned numerous starred reviews. She lives in Virginia.

David Walker is the author-illustrator of Here with Me and the illustrator of the If Animals Kissed Good Night series, including If Animals Kissed Good Night, which School Library Journal calls “charming” and which has sold more than two million copies. He lives in Apex, North Carolina.

Editorial Reviews

"In this 'The House That Jack Built'–style tale, wayward wisps of hair trigger a chain reaction resulting in an unlikely union of bears and birds." —Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2022-10-12
In this “The House That Jack Built”–style tale, wayward wisps of hair trigger a chain reaction resulting in an unlikely union of bears and birds.

“This is the lair the bears shared.” Three bear cubs and a mother bear peek out of their den. The following page shows the mother slumbering. Brown fur, propelled by the sleeping mother bear’s breath, wafts outside and across the double-page spread to a perky red bird as the text explains, “This is the hair that came / from the lair / the bears shared.” With each page turn, another element is added to the rhyme as momentum and drama build. The bird borrows the bear’s hair to build a nest for three baby birds in a tall tree that the wind shakes and a rain cloud soaks until the branch holding the nest cracks, tossing the nest and baby birds into a bush and eventually onto slippery ground, where they slide into the bear lair. In a full-circle finale, mama bear and cubs confront mama bird and the baby birds. As the catchy cadenced text expands, its repetition and rich alliterative language (“water whirled on wind,” “the bush with bouncy boughs”) are ideal for reading aloud. Illustrations effectively use close-ups and unusual perspectives to heighten excitement, while pastel hues and soft shapes create a gentle, reassuring aura for the unusual bear-bird encounter. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A clever, nest-building saga that reminds us how interconnected we are. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)

Kirkus Reviews