The Very Itchy Bear

The Bear #2

by Nick Bland

Companion to The Very Cranky Bear

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Animals, Storytime, Humor, Friendship

24 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Nick Bland was born in the Yarra Valley of Australia, in 1973. He was the son of an artist and a primary school teacher, and spent his early years on the farm where his parents lived. At age six, he moved with his family to 'the bush'. He wanted to be a cartoonist and a writer from a very young age. In 1996, he took a job at a book store, and decided to write and illustrate children's books. His first book, "A Monster Wrote Me a Letter" was published in Australia in 2005. He currently lives in Darwin, Australia and works full time as an author illustrator.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

After some time being cranky, Bear is back for another go! This time, Bear encounters the minuscule flea who packs a punch. Biting high and low, to and fro... and everywhere in between. Bear does all he can to rid himself of this flea, finally able to flick the little thing off. However, guilt fills him and he chooses to rescue his young frenemy... creating a lasting bond. Neo loved being able to rhyme along in this book and remembers our reading others in the series. Great illustrations accompany some wonderful rhymes, perfect for the early reader!

[Sarah (saz101) · Rating 4 out of 5]

An epic tale of friendship, forgiveness, and sea travel, The Very Itchy Bear reveals messages that will resonate in the minds and hearts of its readers. A profoundly moving story chronicling the complicated mechanics of inter-species relationships, and the struggles they must face in the journey for acceptance... of each other.
~fin~

[jodiel86 · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 3 year old loves this one.

[Janique Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book follows a bear, a flea, and their unlikely relationship. The flea is very small to see and bites the bear to say hello. This biting makes the bear itch high and low. Because the bear is so itchy, he tumbles and falls into a body of water. The bear hangs onto a wooden stump as he is floating out to sea, unsure if the flea is still on him. Soon, the flea reminds the bear that he hasn't gone anywhere and this causes the bear to flick him off his fur. Now that the bear is alone, he starts to feel a little scared. The flea starts to get scared of the hungry birds so the bear swims over to rescue him. In the end, they have a special bond and the bear reads to the flea. Such a cute and simple book filled with rhymes. I really liked the page where they had a closeup of the flea and his smiling face. A great, funny book for young children.

[Tania Woznicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Very Itchy Bear is one of the first books I read to little one at 5 weeks old. She smiled and excitedly cooed as I read it to her and years later, this is still one of her favourite books. The bear is so itchy as a flea won't stop biting him. He flicks the flea to rid get rid of it because it's annoying him. However, as soon as he does this, he regrets it and retrieves the flea. They then come to a mutual agreement as friends. Anyone who has been annoyed at someone but then missed them when they're gone, can relate to the message in this book.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Almost worth rounding up to four stars but I, personally, find the cover too scary, with those big white eyes. I love the use of white space on the pages to fit in a lot of images of the bear reacting to the flea bites; it looks like he's dancing. The ending is odd, but in a metaphorical sense it's fine.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent sequel where the bear struggles with a very bitey flea and eventually saves/befriends him. Moral: getting bitten on the ass if better than being alone. Not sure I agree, but it takes all kinds…

8/10

[Pip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny one, small flea

[Jacinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprisingly the first of the bear series that I haven't absolutely loved on the first read. I enjoyed it more on subsequent read throughs though but still not as much as others in the series.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

The newest addition to my niece's library and the third Very ____ Bear book she now owns. Not as popular as the Very Noise Bear, but more popular then the Very Cranky Bear. Bear and Flea, people.

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book in the library and its a real winner! I can't wait to read it with my students!

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute story about an unlikely friendship! Love the illustrations, as always with Nick Bland.

[Freddie D · Rating 5 out of 5]

The untold love story of a bear and a flea that we never knew we needed.

[Beread_in · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very active active story in that I can incorporate some play (tickles) while reading the story to her.

[Karen Dransfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fun story by Nick Bland about Bear... this time Flea is trying to say hello by biting him... and he's trying to get the biting to stop.... very fun.

[Martin Cohen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this beautiful story about two very unlikely friends. It’s charming, beautifully illustrated and a perfect bedtime read.

[Lex Redding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated as always from Nick Bland but the story was a little lacking.

[Amabelle Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

A journey of acceptance
It’s a good choice if you want to introduce/touch on the topics of acceptance in a light hearted way

[Ellie Denniss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute rhyming book.

[Saqqa Alamdar · Rating 2 out of 5]

بامزه بود. نقاشی ها و جملاتش خوب بود. البته محتوای خیلی خاصی نداشت ولی سعی داشت درباره اهمیت دوستی و همراه داشتن چیزایی بگه.
«خرسی خیلی کلافه» را از طاقچه دریافت کنید
https://taaghche.com/book/113259

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A silly rhyming story of a flea who says hello to a bear and sets off a series of hilarious events.

Recommended for storytime.

[Rosie · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much fun! This is a lovely series.

[Hardial · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super cute story, but has less text than the others in this series, so less of the really wonderful rhyming rhythm to enjoy. Still worth reading to your kiddo!

[raccoon reader]

During the first 8 years of my son's life we read bear books over and over. I'm only recording this once but it could easily be 20 😂

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute read.

[Fatima Seraj Alam · Rating 5 out of 5]

The rhyme scheme with the onomatopoeia was fun to read. A tale of a huge bear & a minuscule flea and how they are at odds but in the end reconcile reminded me of Tom & Jerry cartoons.

[Rebecca Kurien · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm embarrassed to admit I had to (pretend to) strain my eyes to see the flea, something my child found exceedingly funny. A delightfully engaging story, Nick Bland nails it again!

[Whole And · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super sweet story about a bear and a flea and the frienship that's created, despite the initial annoyances.

[Cruth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author/Illustrator: Nick Bland
First Published: 2010

We like Nick Bland. The acrylic paint on paper illustrations appeal, the rhythmic narrative makes us laugh.

They're hard to fault.

But as the 4th Bland book I have reviewed recently, this one is not my favourite.

Exploring friendship and caring for one another, Bear and Flea have a little adventure on their way to a HEA. I love how Bland encourages literacy by having Bear spending his time reading. I love the colour and vibrancy of the images, the appealing anthropomorphism of the characters and the simple, expressing rhyming narrative.

I just didn't love it as much as his other books.

However.

This book is made to be an App.

Yes, there's an App
https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/the-v...
The App is able to take the imagery and necessary emphasis and bring it alive, encouraging the reader to engage and interact with the story and characters. Embracing the possibilities of coupling a DTB with an App, Bland, narrator Angus Sampson and his App developers have given the book extra appeal. Definitely worth the couple of bucks and phone space Angry Birds used to have.

Age
Read Aloud: 3+
Read Yourself: 6+

(ISBN 9781742838786)

[Steven R. McEvoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nick Bland's books have been favorites in our home for a few years now, from the fun and funny A Monster Wrote Me a Letter to the hilarious The Wrong Book, and the very charming I Lost My Kisses. But our first introduction to Bland's work was the wonderful, The Very Cranky Bear. So when a new book came out called The Very Itchy Bear we had to have it and read it. My son loved it the first time I read it to him. He had to hear it about a dozen times in a row, then he went and found The Very Cranky Bear so we could read them alternately about another 7 or 8 times. Bland's books are all amazing and this one is great fun.

Read the review and with links to other reviews of books by the authors on my blog Book Reviews and More.