A Friend for Little Bear

A bored teddy bear living on a desert island starts collecting flotsam, and is delighted when a playmate, in the form of a wooden horse, drifts by. But Little Bear remains obsessed with floating bounty, and pulls ashore enough items to crowd his little island: ""I don't know what these items are... but I need them, all the same."" While he is fixated on a new possession, Little Bear almost loses Wooden Horse in a freak accident, and remorsefully learns the value of friendship. Due to the generic characters and contrived story line, the tale's moral is all too transparent. The quaint watercolors are a cut above the tale: first-time author/artist Horse creates a limpid, reflective sea and ethereal open sky, forming an exquisite backdrop for the toy characters, whose simple hinged bodies are as animated as their faces are expressionless. The refreshing pictures breathe life into an uninspired story. Ages 5-7. (Aug.)