Baby Bear's Chairs

Baby Bear

by Jane Yolen, Melissa Sweet (illustrator)

Baby Bear is the littlest bear in his family, and sometimes that's not so easy. Mama and Papa Bear get to stay up late in their great big chairs. Big brother gets to play fun games in his middle-sized chair. And Baby Bear only seems to cause trouble in his own tiny chair. But at the end of the day, he finds the one perfect chair that's comfier and cozier than all the rest.

Bestselling author Jane Yolen and popular illustrator Melissa Sweet have come together to create a lyrical bedtime tale about a baby bear trying to find his place in a family. With a playful rhyming text and adorable, fun illustrations, here is a book for parents and their own baby bears to treasure.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Storytime, Animals

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Jane Yolen is a novelist, poet, fantasist, journalist, songwriter, storyteller, folklorist, and children’s book author who has written more than three hundred books. Her accolades include the Caldecott Medal, two Nebula Awards, the World Fantasy Award, three Mythopoeic Awards, the Kerlan Award, two Christopher Awards, and six honorary doctorate degrees from colleges and universities in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Born and raised in New York City, the mother of three and the grandmother of six, Yolen lives in Massachusetts and St. Andrews, Scotland.

Reviews

[midnightfaerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a big hit with all my children. The bright colorful illustrations held my 3 yr old's attention, and the rhyming and story was enjoyed by my 5 yr old. I loved the bears that wouldn't take there nap, and lost no time in pointing out the similarities between them and my 3 yr old twins. They just smiled and said "Yes...bears go to bed! No playing!" Pretty much repeating my daily mantra. Overall it was a fun read if not something I could read over and over again.

[Matthew Horhoruw · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Baby Bear's Chairs" by Jane Yolen is a wonderful story that follows a family of bears on their journey through life. In this family, there are parents who take care of two younger bears. Just like kids everywhere, these little bears want comfort, attention, and approval from their parents. The special thing about this book is how it connects baby bears and chairs. The chairs in the story symbolize the children's desire to be treated like grown-ups, just like their parents. It's a way of saying, "I want to be like you, Mom and Dad!" In the story, you can see how the young bears really look up to their dad, who is their caregiver and protector. It shows us how important family is and how much of an impact a parent can have on their children. One cool thing we learned in class is that pictures and words can tell different stories. When you read the book, you might just see bears in a family setting. But if you look deeper, you'll find a message about growing up, family, and wanting to be like the people you love and admire. It's like a hidden treasure in the book that you can discover by paying attention to both the words and the pictures. "Baby Bear's Chairs" is not just a story about bears; it's a story about love, growing up, and the special bonds that families share.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Baby Bear lives in a house with big chairs for big bears, middle-sized chairs for middle-sized bears, and a little chair for baby bear. This story is told in the voice of the baby bear who isn’t big enough or old enough to stay up late or to do the things bigger bears do. But the baby has a favourite chair where there is love and cuddles. Nicely illustrated.

[Selma Ruiz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Baby Bear's Chairs is a sweet and charming story. With its adorable illustrations and heartwarming message about friendship and family, it's sure to become a favorite read for young readers. I love the rhyming of the text and would love to have this book in my future classroom.

[Arlene Mullen · Rating 5 out of 5]

So cute! My kids loved it

[Kimberly Sabatini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very, very sweet.

[Misbah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bedtime rhyme about a baby bear as he tries to find out which chair is the best type of chair to sit in.

[Teonna Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Out of all the chairs baby bear notices, his favorite chair is his papa's chair where he lays on his papa's chest!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful story poem with lots of rhyming and repetition. Perfect for grade two.

[Jill Lesley Malinouskas-Negro · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kids were so excited to get a signed copy of this from the author!

[Katie P · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a toddler favorite from this library haul.

[Anaeka · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book would work for older children too. Kids can empathize with the book since most kids feel older kids and parents have it easy compared to them. The book beautifully describes being with older people (parents and siblings). It describes being a baby. I don't know if A gets all of this but she likes the book. Another thumbs up for the book in that it hints that the baby cosleeps in the family bed/with the parents. (most bedtime books just gloss over bedtime and SELDOM show co-sleeping) Rolie Poly olie is the only other book that show co-sleeping.

[Destiny Dawn Long · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love "Baby Bear's Books" so I was excited to find this volume at the library. It features the same great illustrations and characters that I enjoyed so much. However, "Baby Bear' Chairs" was a bit of a disappointment. I liked some of the themes explored--how it feels being littler than everyone else, struggling to keep up--but using chairs as the vehicle to explore these ideas just seemed a little weird to me. There was also no clear sense of order to what was going on.

I was tempted to rate it higher because I really do love the illustrations... but the text was just so meh.

[Eva-Marie Nevarez · Rating 4 out of 5]

These books make up some of Yolen's best. I truly wish she'd stick with these. I truly think that the majority of readers who rate some of her other books well are working from their memory of her better books. It's strange that she can run so hot and cold for me and my daughter.
The illustrations here are big and bright and cheerful that you can't help but be drawn in to the story. I really like Melissa Sweet's books and I'm looking forward to reading more.

[Kristen Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was average. I liked the rhyming and colorful pictures, but the story was very basic. It didn't have a plot, and the sequencing didn't make very much sense. The pictures of the little bears in high chairs were cute, but could have followed the text better. I think it would be a good book to read your child as a bedtime story, but that is about it. It doesn't have much intellectual value for the adult reading the story.

[Robyn Simmons · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book places a modern twist of the story of The Three Little Bears. It tells the story of Baby Bear searching to find a chair that fits his comfort level. This story is very family oriented. Baby Bear's mother and father succeed to make him as comfortabvle as possible.

[Julene · Rating 5 out of 5]

The pictures are fairly cute, but I really love the words in this one. Obviously written by someone with kid experience, it is a sweet (and very short) commentary about the difficulties and perks of being the baby.

[Misty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet book. I would definitely use this book to talk about proper usage for commas. There are commas all over this book, and they are used for a purpose. I would read this to my students and let them know that commas can also be used for effect. Definitely a writer's workshop addition!

[Tricia · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the story has a baby bear and chairs, it's not a re-telling of the classic story of the three bears. This bear has an older brother bear...and some of the story is about how the little bear has a hard time keeping up...and how Papa's chest is the best chair of all.

[The Reading Countess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple, sweet story about what it is to be the baby of the family. Despite no longer being A baby, we still call youngest son "the baby." Youngest kids everywhere (and all siblings, really) will latch onto this tale.

[Kristen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this might work well in toddler story time because of the nice rhyme, but the cadence was kind of odd, which made it hard to read. And while the overall storyline and illustrations are nice, it just didn't capture me.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Baby bear tries to find a chair for him and ultimately decides papa's lap is best.

[Puja Patel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a very calm book and can be used in a classroom during nap time. It uses rhyming words which make the book flow and makes it easy to understand.

[bernadette · Rating 3 out of 5]

The language has a nice rhythm so good for reading aloud and cute illustrations. It's a sweet book but didn't quite grab the toddler's attention as well as Yolen's How Do Dinosaurs... books.

[Bethe · Rating 4 out of 5]

another delightfully illustrated book by Melissa Sweet, read it with Baby Bear's Books for a tender, fun storytime.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Baby Bear's Chairs!

Tongue! *Sam flips to the page of the Baby Bear in his High Chair with his tongue stuck out, and sticks out his own tongue*

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm a Jane Yolen fan, but this was just ok. Little ones will like looking for the bee on each page.

[Maggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Golden Kite for PB Illustration (2006)

Cute rhymes follow a bear family as they explore all their different shapes and sizes. Good for a bear story time with littles.

[Suzanne Lorraine Kunz Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute book about chairs and the coziness of fathers.

* Talking Points: What's your favorite place to sit at home? If you could chose any chair to sit it, what type of chair would it be?

[Kyla · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great twist on the Goldilocks theme. Great read aloud.