Big Bear, Little Bear

In this expertly crafted board book by Schneider, readers can compare the personal effects of brown, anthropomorphic Big Bear and child Little Bear. Set against swaths of paint, each spread features one of Big Bear’s belongings on the left, and Little Bear’s corresponding item on the right; corresponding labels run along the bottom of each page. A gentle humor pervades the text: one red left-hand page reads “Big Bear’s car,” showing a reverse silhouette in white of the figure in an automobile; the facing page, washed in muted storm blue, reads “Little Bear’s car,” showing Big Bear hauling Little Bear in a red-and-white-checked baby sling. The simple pages cycle through several everyday objects in this affirming, loosely chronological account, with progressive spreads taking the bears from coffee to dinner to bed, providing a smooth, soothing opportunity for human guardians to do the same. Ages up to 3. (Sept.)