PreS-Gr 1—This addition to the crowded field of winter, bear, and snow books lacks internal logic and breaks no new ground. When his friends tell Chaucer (a little bear) that they will miss him because he will sleep through the winter, and his parents tell him it will be good for him, Chaucer "[is] not convinced." Instead, he stays awake, experiencing snowball fights, icy ponds, icicles, and sliding down hills. When a big storm hits, he builds a snow fort to protect his friends and, predictably, when spring comes, he falls asleep. Oddly, his parents appear in the background of a number of illustrations, awake as well. Cole's cuddly cartoon animals, which sport scarves but no other clothing, are rendered in acrylic paint, colored pencil, and ink. The pictures are large and inviting, primarily done in full-bleed spreads, with spot art and single-page illustrations adding motion and interest. For a better book about a bear resisting hibernation, stick with Catherine Walters's When Will It Be Spring? (Dutton, 1998; o.p.). Leonid Gore's Danny's First Snow (S & S, 2007) and Ezra Jack Keats's The Snowy Day (Viking, 1962) do a better job of exploring the joys of winter.—Amy Lilien-Harper, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT
Chaucer, a little bear cub, decides not to hibernate so he can keep playing with his friends, a fox and a squirrel, all winter. They teach him about snowball fights, ice "skating" and sledding, but when a blizzard threatens, Chaucer intuitively builds a snow den to keep them all safe. The story is so full of holes it's practically mesh: What does Chaucer eat all winter? How is it he doesn't even get sleepy? What about his parents? Cole's illustrations depict a teddy-bear-like Chaucer disporting himself while his benignly smiling parents keep an eye on him in the background. Krensky's text shines in its use of dialogue, if not in its observance of natural history, and kids who can overlook its logical gaps will probably get a chuckle or two out of it. (Picture book. 3-6)
