Who Has Time for Little Bear?

An unusually warm palette heats up the cozy forest setting for what is otherwise a predictable tale. Spring has arrived, and Mama and Papa Bear get busy building a log cabin. But Little Bear is too small to help, and Mama and Papa have no time for him--not even when he builds a miniature house of twigs. ""Somewhere there must be someone with time for me,"" he thinks unhappily as he runs off into the woods. After several false attempts, Little Bear finally finds another bear cub to befriend (his parents, incidentally, never notice that he is gone). The German author's text offers kids a familiar solution to a common problem, but the story somehow misses the point that even young children can help out--if only in small ways. Wensell's (They Followed a Bright Star) golden-hued art is the magnet here--his combinations of colors and consciously cute animals give each spread a happy, reassuring glow. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)