Exquisitely crafted cut-paper collages don't manage to redeem this wordy, poorly focused story about a mother bear and her cub. Snug wants to play; Mother wants to teach him bear skills like digging up bulbs, catching a fistful of ants for a snack and fishing. Unfortunately, Hanson (Foghorn) wavers disconcertingly between anthropomorphism and nature study. Snug has a child's emotions, but if Mother isn't 100% bearlike, she is certainly bearish: she "grumbles," "growls" and "snarls" at her offspring. When Snug finds Mother "more frightening than a flood," youngest readers are likely to agree, and they will probably be alienated by the end, when Mother finally plays with her cub. More harmonious as a whole than the events they depict, Taylor's (Coconut Man) illustrations are expertly assembled from vividly hand-colored and intriguingly textured handmade papers. The bears and other figures are backed with other papers, for a tidy outline effect and for a bit of dimension. A well-chosen scale minimizes Mother's menacing qualities, and dynamic compositions may hold readers' interest as the text, like Mother, lumbers on. Ages 3-7.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 1?While a disgruntled mother bear steadfastly attempts to teach her playful cub to search for food, little Snug manages to get into all sorts of mischief. He avoids lessons in bulb digging, ant catching, and fishing, only to get stuck in a log or caught in a fast river current. Mother is always standing by to help him and finally has time to do what Snug has wanted all along?play. Paper-collage artwork in warm tones of brown and green gives the book a comforting look. The story loses some of its reassuring appeal, though, when the mother is described as grunting, grumbling, growling, and snarling at her baby. A marginal purchase.?Anne Knickerbocker, Cedar Brook Elementary School, Houston, TX
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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