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Read and Wonder
Brown Bears
Follow two Alaskan cubs through their first year—and learn what it takes for a cub to become a bear—in this engaging picture book written by a noted zoologist.
Spring has arrived in Alaska, and after spending many months hibernating, a brown bear is waking up. She was alone when she fell asleep at the start of winter, but now she is climbing out of her den with a pair of cubs to protect and nurture. As they grow, she will have to teach them how to survive in the wilderness, from climbing trees to foraging berries and nuts to snatching salmon out of the river. Despite their sharp teeth and long claws, grizzly bears’ lives aren’t so simple, and one day these young bears will be on their own. The lyrical text is beautifully illustrated and threaded through with fascinating facts, while an author’s note at the end offers more about brown bears for curious readers.
Spring has arrived in Alaska, and after spending many months hibernating, a brown bear is waking up. She was alone when she fell asleep at the start of winter, but now she is climbing out of her den with a pair of cubs to protect and nurture. As they grow, she will have to teach them how to survive in the wilderness, from climbing trees to foraging berries and nuts to snatching salmon out of the river. Despite their sharp teeth and long claws, grizzly bears’ lives aren’t so simple, and one day these young bears will be on their own. The lyrical text is beautifully illustrated and threaded through with fascinating facts, while an author’s note at the end offers more about brown bears for curious readers.
31 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 28, 2025
About the author
Nick Crumpton
20 books4 followersNick Crumpton is a zoologist and writer based in London. He received his PhD from the University of Cambridge and has researched the inner workings of the mammalian organs of hearing and balance, what the very earliest mammals that lived in the age of the dinosaurs liked to eat, and what sub-fossils of new species from Indonesia can tell us about evolution.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 14, 2024
Copy provided by Young Adult Books Central
After going into her den for the winter to hibernate, a mother bear emerges with two small bear cubs in the spring. They must learn how to find food, leave their scent for other bears, and scratch off bugs, all foundational activities that will serve them well in their lives but also help them grow stronger as cubs. When fall arrives, the cubs and the mother eat as much as they can so that they can once again hibernate. The mother builds another den, and the three settle in for another winter. When the emerge, they must find food, and sometimes must contend with male bears who might find the cubs to be a tasty snack! The small family stays together for the summer, growing and picking up more skills, but in the fall, the cubs will need to start life on their own.
This reminded me a bit of a Little Golden Book about a litter of puppies that my children had years ago; there's lots of information, often in italics at the bottoms of the pages, but also a charming story that takes us through the first few years of the cubs' lives. There is a note from the author in the back, as well as a map of where brown bears can be found. There is even a very short index, which is somewhat unusual in a picture book.
The real draw here is Lamour's illustration. While this employs mostly brown, green, and tan, there are some touches of red that really pop. The bears are very solidly colored and have adorable expressions on their faces, but the backgrounds are very dreamy and translucent. The page with the bears eating berries could be framed and hung in a forest themed nursery!
Crumpton is also the author of Everything You Know About Sharks is Wrong and Everything You Know About Dinosaurs is Wrong, as well as How to Chat Chicken, Gossip Gorilla, Babble Bee, Gab Gecko, and Talk in 66 Other Animal Languages. This is a shorter book, and much more accessible to younger readers as a read aloud. Having read it, I sort of want to hunt down similar picture books on lions, giraffes, and tigers to assemble a whole zoo of animal picture books!
After going into her den for the winter to hibernate, a mother bear emerges with two small bear cubs in the spring. They must learn how to find food, leave their scent for other bears, and scratch off bugs, all foundational activities that will serve them well in their lives but also help them grow stronger as cubs. When fall arrives, the cubs and the mother eat as much as they can so that they can once again hibernate. The mother builds another den, and the three settle in for another winter. When the emerge, they must find food, and sometimes must contend with male bears who might find the cubs to be a tasty snack! The small family stays together for the summer, growing and picking up more skills, but in the fall, the cubs will need to start life on their own.
This reminded me a bit of a Little Golden Book about a litter of puppies that my children had years ago; there's lots of information, often in italics at the bottoms of the pages, but also a charming story that takes us through the first few years of the cubs' lives. There is a note from the author in the back, as well as a map of where brown bears can be found. There is even a very short index, which is somewhat unusual in a picture book.
The real draw here is Lamour's illustration. While this employs mostly brown, green, and tan, there are some touches of red that really pop. The bears are very solidly colored and have adorable expressions on their faces, but the backgrounds are very dreamy and translucent. The page with the bears eating berries could be framed and hung in a forest themed nursery!
Crumpton is also the author of Everything You Know About Sharks is Wrong and Everything You Know About Dinosaurs is Wrong, as well as How to Chat Chicken, Gossip Gorilla, Babble Bee, Gab Gecko, and Talk in 66 Other Animal Languages. This is a shorter book, and much more accessible to younger readers as a read aloud. Having read it, I sort of want to hunt down similar picture books on lions, giraffes, and tigers to assemble a whole zoo of animal picture books!
October 13, 2024
Focusing on a mother brown bear and her two cubs, zoologist Nick Compton takes us on a journey through the Alaskan seasons. His fascinating narrative about the small family appears in a larger font in this informative picture book, while further details appear in smaller type, usually at the bottom of the page. As the story opens, a mother bear emerges from her den with her offspring, who were born during hibernation. Lamour’s delightful mixed media and watercolor illustrations show the bear teaching her cubs how to survive in the wilderness: scratching, foraging (even in garbage cans), and building a den for the next winter. The art is precise enough to provide real information, but the bears remain lively and appealing. Although the illustrations of the mother and cubs always show them in their habitat (where we can easily see their relative size), Lamour cleverly spreads a painting of a threatening male bear across two pages, his massive body entirely filling the image area. Lively prose anticipates and answers questions and while the language can be sophisticated (the bears “slumber”, the spruces “rustle”, and the mother “chomps” her teeth to warn of danger), its richness will make this a great read aloud. The book closes with a note from the author about various species of brown bears, a map of their ranges, conservation information, and a short index. Beautiful deep blue endpapers feature expressive pencil sketches of bears, which presumably were studies for Larmour’s illustrations. Link to complete review: https://ysbookreviews.wordpress.com/2...
September 28, 2025
Brown Bears is an engaging non-fiction children’s book written by the Zoologist, Dr Nick Crumpton.
An accurate story that follows the life of two Alaskan Brown Bear cubs and their mom as they navigate the first two seasons of their life.
While written in easy to read format, we are also presented with factual information that readers of all ages will enjoy.
Highly recommend for children that enjoy true nature stories.
Recommended for ages 5 to 10 by the SEPA Book Reviewers
An accurate story that follows the life of two Alaskan Brown Bear cubs and their mom as they navigate the first two seasons of their life.
While written in easy to read format, we are also presented with factual information that readers of all ages will enjoy.
Highly recommend for children that enjoy true nature stories.
Recommended for ages 5 to 10 by the SEPA Book Reviewers
March 31, 2024
4 stars
I read a digital advance copy courtesy of the publisher and Edelweiss
This book chronicles the life of an Alaskan brown bear from birth and emerging from hibernation with its mother until it is almost two years old and starts to live on its own. Filled with facts about bear behavior, this book is a good introduction to Alaskan brown bears.
I read a digital advance copy courtesy of the publisher and Edelweiss
This book chronicles the life of an Alaskan brown bear from birth and emerging from hibernation with its mother until it is almost two years old and starts to live on its own. Filled with facts about bear behavior, this book is a good introduction to Alaskan brown bears.
December 9, 2024
Lovely illustrations, great overview. As someone who has been told that bears don't go into deep hibernation, it was confusing to learn they stay in their dens for 7 months at a time - and the facts about their heartrates are fascinating.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews