BIG BROWN BEAR'S CAVE

Reviewed by: Connie Smith - Breakwater School, Portland, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: August 15, 2018

Review

Big Brown Bear discovers a cave that is just right for him and moves in right away. He soon finds that his newly found cave does not fit him "just right." He goes out for a stroll and notices that humans have their own caves too. But their caves are filled with "stuff." So Big Bro Bear helps himself to the stuff that he likes which happens to be stuff with handles, wheels, and stuff that comes in boxes. He hauls it all back to his cave and fills every single corner. Curious, his friends come to visit but soon find that there is no room for them in Big Brown Bear's cave. When his friends then ask Big Brown Bear to accompany them on a fishing trip, Big Brown Bear cannot, because he is trapped inside his own cave. Finally, his friends come to his rescue and pull him out. The stuff all gets returned to the human cave with the help of these friends. When finished with the task, they all crawl inside Big Brown Bear's cave to nap beside him. And to Big Brown Bear, finally, the cave feels like home. Thus, Big Brown Bear discovers that what he truly needs is friends and not more stuff.

This is a clever little picture book that presents wonderfully descriptive and detailed illustrations. Children will enjoy the illustrations as much as the story itself. Best for ages 4-8 years and good to use when studying wildlife/bears and, perhaps, when one is needing to clean out their "stuff."

Overall Book Score: very good