A Story For Bear, written by Dennis Haseley, was completely over looked by the Caldecott Committee. Truly an injustice has been done to this wonderful story. A bear stumbles upon a young woman reading near her cabin. The bear doesn't understand what the young woman is doing. He is enchanted nonetheless and keeps returning to watch her. One day the woman invites the bear to sit near her. When the bear does, she proceeds to read out loud to him. A lovely friendship ensues between them as the woman continues reading out loud to the bear each day. When the time comes for the woman to go away, she leaves all of her books for the bear. One by one he collects each book and takes them back to his cave. The illustrations, by Jim LaMarche, are warm and convey a sense of mystery and wonder. As I read A Story For Bear I was taken on an emotional journey. Children will be too.

Preston McClear...

The reviewer for Publisher's Weekly doesn't seen to understand perspective. The story is from the bear's point-of-view, throughout and a simple, trusting perspective it is. The other reviewers have a better grasp on the power (and the flaws) of A Story for Bear. I agree that the letter is perplexing but, as a whole, the book is one I would read to my kids many times over.

One summer day, a bear strayed far from home, and found himself in a clearing, watching a woman reading. "Sometimes, as she gazed at the book, she laughed out loud. Other times, she lowered it and looked away, but without really seeing anything, he thought. Still other times, she appeared afraid and held it tightly, And once, when the sun slanted through the trees, he saw her place it gently on her lap and close her eyes..." The bear was mesmerized, and came back day after day to watch the woman read. One day the woman notices the bear and calls to him. He cautiously lumbers over near her chair, lies down, and she begins to read aloud. "The bear gazed up at her as she said the words and turned the pages. He couldn't understand any of what she was saying. But as he listened to the sound of her voice, happiness washed over him like waves." And so the summer continued, until one day, as autumn approached, the bear arrived at her chair in the woods, and she was gone. "There, under the tree where she usually sat, were her books. There were many of them, more than he had ever seen, lying on a cloth, fallen leaves and pinecones on their covers." Slowly and carefully he took each book back to his cave. "And all that winter, before she came back in the spring, whenever he put his nose to the pages or touched the covers with his claws, she was there..." Dennis Haseley's eloquent text is quiet and heartwarming, and filled with magic. But it's Jim LaMarche's engaging, dreamy and expressive artwork, in soft and appealing earthtones, that really makes this picture book stand out. Together word and art send a gentle message about the joys of reading and being read to, that won't be lost on young children. Perfect for youngsters 3-7, A Story For Bear makes a wonderfully soothing and reassuring bedtime story that little ones will beg to read again and again.

Can you combine love and wisdom and deep insight while writing in a simple, inspiring style? Judy Ford has written "Wonderful Ways to Love a Child" in such a direct way that you feel warmed by her words at the same time you are inspired by them. I am so grateful that this book was written.

Jay Schlechter, PhD Author of Intimate Friends: An Antidote to Loneliness.

Ms Ford. will stress the same point over and over again from very different angles. If you want your raise your kid as a responsible, caring, inquiring, loving and lovable adult, you shall not use fear, cohersion and guilt as the tools of your education. Chances are that you will fail in a big way.

Rembember that children are independt beings who need your support and guidance, not your control. Be open to what they came to teach you and both will benefit in ways which no words can precisely define, since they will take you to the world of the spirit.

The author makes sure that every parent who reads this book mustr a clear understanding that feeling love is not enough you MUST express it.

This is the best book on parenting I've read, and it's the one that's still by my bedside after more than four years' active duty as a mom.

It isn't another "here's what you do when they get green peas lodged in their ears" how-to guide. Instead, it's a gentle, guided journey into the heart of the parent-child bond: love, kindness, respect and caring.

Thank you, Judy Ford!

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then this lovely children's book is a novel! It's charmingly told & drawn with some quite serious ideas to tell. Just who teaches us? How do we learn & why? A good book to ask questions about afterwards. ...

This is the third time we are checking this delightful book out of the library, so it's definitely time to buy it. My just turning three year old loves this book and has us read it to him every night. The pictures are great, and he has this story down to memory also, as someone else mentioned in their review. I would recommend this book to anyone with a 2-5 year old in mind..

Susan Winter's engaging pictures accompany this very simple yet engaging story of a little copy cub who learns lessons of life by imitating his mother. A simple text makes it easy for youngsters to learn about the little cub's efforts to mimic his mother's wisdom.

Something very strange is going on in Crooked Tree State Forest in the state of Michigan. Several people are savagely attacked and killed by black bears. The Ottawa Indians suspect that an ancient legend has come to pass where the spirit of Shawonabe, an evil man has taken over the mind and body of a living person and is inciting the bears to murder. Shawonabe called "the evil one from the south," is buried somewhere in Crooked Tree State Forest, and the legend is referred to as "the bearwalk."...

This is a story that kept me reading late into the night. I also learned that pound for pound, the black bear is the strongest animal alive.

I ...would love to see this story made into a movie!

A MUST READ for any horror story, outdoor or Native American aficionado. "Crooked Tree" evokes an old Ottawa Indian legend as it explores the strange and increasingly violent behavior of some large furry woodland denizens. An evil spirit is threatening the balance of nature and the lives of local residents, and it's growing in power. Soon, it's affecting more than just the bears...

For a book set in the woods of Northern Michigan, "Crooked Tree" keeps a remarkably fast pace. And despite the pace, the character development doesn't suffer.

The book is superbly timed and is as scary as any Steven King novel I've ever read (and that includes Carrie, The Shining, Cujo and Christine). I join the ranks of Amazon.com reviewers calling for a movie adaptation. This would put any recent "horror" film to shame, and they wouldn't have to go hog-wild on the special effects budget. In fact, to any movie execs reading this and considering a screenplay (fat chance): I beg of you, please don't! If I have to watch another movie like "The Haunting" I may just poke my eyes out.

And speaking of eyes, you'll be doing double takes with people and pets for quite some time after you read this... just to be sure...

The book should also appeal to any Michiganders with ties to the North Woods or hunters in general. Readers interested in more background on the legend of the Crooked Tree should check out the book of the same name by John Couchois Wright that describes the history and legends of Michigan's Little Traverse Bay region and the Ottawa Indians.

- Reviewed by Todd V.

I read this probably 25 years ago and could not put it down. One of our sons read it and gave it to another son who could not finish it as it was just too scary for him at the age of 19 or 20. He lost it and we have been trying to find another copy for years. It was so vivid you could live it as you read. The bear breathing down your neck and the indian references were all too, too real! Not a book for someone who scares easily.

"Once there were two bears, Big Bear and Little Bear. Big Bear is the big bear and Little Bear is the little bear."

Each of these Little Bear books by Martin Waddell opens in this delightfully familiar way. My two-year-old cozies in right beside me in anticipation of the beginning of one of these books (because once you read one, you have to read them all).

In "Good Job, Little Bear", Big Bear encourages Little Bear in all his exploring and yet, when Little Bear makes a mistep, Big Bear is there to help, support, and reassure... Little Bear is able to regain his confidence with the help of Big Bear's sensitive parenting (because, even though he looks like a big bear, he really is just a very good parent).

"Good Job, Little Bear" is a book that will remain behind on my bookshelves as my son grows. In the fine tradition of books that reassure about parental love, Waddell has captured the sentiments of parents around the world. The last line of the book, "I'll be there when you need me... always" gave me a catch in my throat and, I have to admit, a tear in my eye.

This is a really good book for young kids. My 3 year old daughter loves it and laughs hysterically when Little Bear falls in the water. And it has a really sweet, comforting ending which is great right before bed. I also think it is a good length for little ones, not too wordy. I think little ones can really identify with Little Bear and the things he does in this one. Cute book!

After reading all of the little bear books, I would have to say that this is one of my two year olds favorite book. My son loves the little bear/big bear adventure stories.( Please write more) I would highly recommend this book to parents, teachers and fellow librarians.

This is a must-read book for anyone interested in any of the following topics: African-American History, hunting, Theodore Roosevelt, Southern History, the Civil War, and William Faulkner. As an avid Faulkner reader, I cannot help but conclude that Holt Collier is the real-life person upon which the pivotal character of Sam Fathers is based. Beyond this observation, the book is well researched and is an excellent read. You will not be disappointed. HOLT COLLIER deserves a wide audience and should be assigned reading.

Brilliantly written non-fiction biography using countless primary sources. An amazing new character never before presented to the general public. If this book had not been sent to me as a present I would have never heard of it. Apparently it has been sold only as a regional book, but I can assure any reader, it will have a national following in due course. Very highly recommended. Well worth the read. You will come away from this book thinking about it for weeks, and frankly, you will soon pick it up to read it again.

As a history major in college I developed a taste for the truth that can only be found in biographies. Over the years I have kept a small library in my home and under my bed to read at night, prior to retiring. The book by Mr. Buchanan is a detailed, accurate account of this man and his relationships to the men around him and his world. Being a product of the Mississippi Delta, I can see Holt Collier in the deep bayou's of the old Delta, hunting the bears. I admire the writer's style in his ability to place me there beside Holt all along the way in this book. There, in the realities of Holt's world, the reader walks his paths, thinks his thoughts, and feels the anger he feels.

Finally I would like to thank Mr. Buchanan for this effort and look forward to seeing more of his work in the future.

Ms. Malcolm nicely lays out the history of the tension between English rulers and subjects over the control of weapons. She made me realize that the current dispute in this country over access to firearms has a long pedigree. Her depiction of the circumstances under which England, in 1689, declared the right to bear arms "true, ancient, and indubitable," when in fact it was none of those is particularly interesting. (See p. 115.) She provides evidence for her view that "it is particularly ironic that some modern American lawyers have misread the English right to have arms as merely a 'collective' right inextricably tied to the need for a militia" (p. 119) when by 1689 the opposite was true. I'm not a historian or a gun enthusiast, but I find all of this quite fascinating.

When the book turns to the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, however, its energy seems to flag. I am sympathetic to the argument that the Second Amendment confers a right on "the people" respectively, i.e. as individuals, "to keep and bear Arms." But Malcolm's argument is undermined, however slightly, when she urges that "[s]ome" i.e., more than one, nascent American state constitutions "included a specific right for an individual to have firearms for his own defence" (p. 150), but quotes and cites, as best I can discern, only the Pennsylvania bill of rights in support (pp. 148, 149). Is there more than one, or not? Another apparent example of waning energy toward the end is the treatment of an argument that "like the Convention Parliament in 1689, the senators [debating drafts of the Second Amendment] rejected a motion to add 'for the common defense' after 'to keep and bear arms.' " (P. 161.) To me, that point seems crucial, but Malcolm does not explore it further, beyond providing a footnoted reference to another source.

Finally, some minor quibbles. Noting the author's regular use of English spelling, I thought she was English until I realized, on reading the penultimate page, that she is an American (p. 176). Perhaps Malcolm was reared and educated in England, but nevertheless her anglicizations are distracting and seem affected. It also seems affected to spell "dissension" archaically as "dissention" (p. 153), and to print "u" as "v" in quoted material, as in "Vs" (Us) (p. 41) or "vpon" (upon) (p. 59). If one is going to do that, why not also ask the typesetter to print quotations with the long "s" that looks similar to the lower-case "f"? (Actually, I wouldn't so much object to that, though it would also come across as affected: at least the long "s" is still an "s," though of archaic form, whereas a "v" is not a "u" at all.) These are, of course, trivial items, but when I encounter them, I think, "Come on, Harvard University Press copy-editors, get with it!"

After all the foregoing griping, it may appear that (1) I am a detail-obsessed curmudgeon of uncommon degree, and (2) I disliked the book. The first point may be true, but the second is not. I look forward to seeing how others eventually build on Malcolm's scholarship.

From T. Markus Funk, "Is the Second Amendment Really Such a Riddle? Tracing the Historical "Origins of an Anglo-American Right" 39 Howard Law Journal 411 (1995):

Few topics of contemporary social, moral, and political debate can provoke as much raw emotion and open hostility as the Second Amendment, particularly in relation to the topic of gun prohibition. This subject routinely causes many well-intentioned people of whatever view to give up all pretense of courtesy and reason in favor of ad hominem attacks on those with whom they disagree. Readers of history professor Joyce Lee Malcolm's To Keep and Bear Arms: The Origins of an Anglo-American Right will find these ugly by-products of the contemporary conflict refreshingly absent. Malcolm clearly keeps her distance from any broad normative judgments about the social utilities or costs of civilian firearms possession, offering instead a sober, scholarly, historical discussion of the Amendment's origins. Meticulously tracing the British history of regulations on firearms ownership from the Middle Ages on, she provides a detailed and illuminating history that includes the English Bill of Rights and, a century later, the American one. Because it is only in this historical context that the Second Amendment's meaning can be fully understood and appreciated, Malcolm's book is essential reading for anyone interested in this complex and controversial subject.

I like how the author explained exactly what he wanted to

In my kindergarten class, my 5 year olds adopted this book as a favorite. After reading it through once, many of the children were 'reading' it on their own. They were so excited! As a mom of 6 pre-school kids, I find my OWN children love it just as much!

My daughter has many, many books. We both love this one. The words are lyrical and fun, the pictures of the bears are interesting for all ages. She has started to pick up the words and "read" the book herself. Our original copy came used and we will be replacing it.

All three of my sons love this book. I have an older hardcover edition of this book my older 14 year old son enjoyed when he was younger. Now I am reading it to my twin boys that are 20 months old. They truely enjoy all the bears in this book. It even has twin bears in it! If you are looking for a book for the under 5 group this is it. Kids love it.

This book really related to me because I used to have a really big lieing problem until my dad and I sat down and had a talk about not to lie. In this story Brother and Sister Bear break Momma Bear's lamp they keep telling more and more lies. But when Papa Bear comes in to help them out he helps them get everything straightened out. I would recommend this book to all parents to help their kids stop lieing.

When brother and sister are playing soccer in the house they end up breaking mama's favorite lamp! They try making up a lie to get of of the blame. But can they keep their story straight>?

This book teaches kids how it is better to tell the truth and not to lie no matter what they have done. It is a great lesson to me learned and I suggest it for any child!

The Berenstain Bears and the Truth is a wonderful story for children of any ages. It teaches children a very important lesson,always to tell the truth no matter what and if a lie is told, it would always come back to haunt you. I greatly recommend this book for children.

In this edition of the Berenstain Bears series, summer is coming to an end and the Bear children are preparing to go to school. Sister Bear is going to be in kindergarten and is a bit anxious about leaving home and spending most of the day in a new and strange place. Mama Bear takes Sister to the school to meet her teacher and look at her classroom. Sister begins to think that school might not be so bad. However, when the bus arrives to pick her up on the first day, Sister is still anxious. Eventually, she comes to enjoy school and in the process teaches Brother Bear a lesson.

This book is a great book to read to toddlers and young children who are about ready to start school. It shows them that it's okay to be nervous about going to school for the first time, yet at the same time calms their fears about school, thereby preparing them for when they begin classes.

I myself enjoyed the berenstien bears Go To school becuse i can relate to their school problems its like they have already walked in my shoes.This book goes into great detail about the first day of school and how it can seem hard to make new friends and sometime the teacher might seem a little scary

I am an elementary school librarian who reads "The Berenstain Bears Go To School" each September to our new kindergartners. It helps set their minds at ease about what school is like.

In this Berenstain Bears story, Mama Bear notices that Sister Bear looks worried when Brother Bear mentions that he wants to get back to school after summer vacation. Mama Bear takes Sister to the Bear Country School to meet Miss Honeybear, the kindergarten teacher. A few days later, Brother Bear rushes to the bus, dragging Sister along with him. Sister discovers that she loves school, so a few days later when Brother Bear wishes it was still vacation, Sister is the one who drags *him* to the bus.

My students always laugh at this change of perspective. I find most of the Berenstain Bear books to be an ideal, and entertaining, way to teach children positive behaviors or attitudes, or to help them relate about the real world. This book is no exception.