Little Bear (book series)
Little Bear is a series of children's picture books written by Else Holmelund Minarik that primarily involves Little Bearan anthropomorphic bear cubhis mother and father, and his friends. Little Bear books have sold millions of copies and achieved multiple awards and recognitions, including a 1962 Caldecott Honor and a place on the ALA Notable Children's Books list and The New York Times Book Review's 1997 list of the best children's books of the previous fifty years.
The first book in the series, titled Little Bear, was published in 1957 by Harper and Brothers, now known as HarperCollins. It was the first entry in the I Can Read! line of children's books, which is characterized by simple sentences using familiar vocabulary for young readers to learn. The book introduced Little Bear and his mother, Mother Bear, and his friends, Cat, Duck, and Hen. Subsequent books in the Little Bear seriespublished in 1959, 1960, 1961, and 1968introduced Little Bear's father, Father Bear; another of his friends, Owl; a girl he meets named Emily; his grandparents, Grandmother and Grandfather Bear; and some other friends, including two skunks.
In a 2006 interview, Minarik discussed why she chose bears as the subjects of her books: "I thought to myself, all children of all colours would be reading the stories. All children love animals. The bear is fine. I love them because Mother took me to the Bronx zoo every day, and I fell in love with the cubs. My bears were a family."
The first five Little Bear books, illustrated by Maurice Sendak, were the basis for a TV series that culminated with a direct-to-video feature film titled The Little Bear Movie. The series was animated by the Canadian studio Nelvana and starred Kristin Fairlie as the voice of Little Bear.
From 2002 to 2004, twenty-eight new Little Bear books were published, authored by Minarik and based on episodes from the TV series. Though Sendak did not return to illustrate this series himself, he did pick its artists: David T. Wenzel illustrated twelve of the books, Chris Hahner illustrated another twelve, Heather Green illustrated two, and Teri Lee illustrated another two. In 2010, two years prior to her death, Minarik wrote one final Little Bear book, Little Bear and the Marco Polo, illustrated by Dorothy Doubleday.
Characters
- Little Bear: A friendly, curious, and imaginative bear cub who lives in the forest.
- Mother Bear: Little Bear's loving mother, who is always there for her son.
- Father Bear: Little Bear's father, a fisherman who is often away at sea.
- Grandmother Bear: Little Bear's grandmother, a kind old bear who bakes cakes and tells stories.
- Grandfather Bear: Little Bear's grandfather, a jolly old bear who plays with his grandson and tells stories.
- Cat, Duck, Hen, and Owl: Little Bear's animal friends.
- Emily: A girl who Little Bear meets and befriends.
Author
She studied Art and Psychology at Queens College, before working as a reporter for the Daily Sentinel of Rome, New York. Shortly thereafter, however, Minarik took up a job as a first-grade teacher on Long Island. Her teaching career, as well as her daughter, inspired her to finally write Little Bear in 1957. Before publishing with Harper, Minarik showed Little Bear to Random House, where an editor made a suggestion to change the bears into humans, which she disagreed with. Thirty-four Little Bear books later, Minarik died at the age of 91 in 2012 after her final Little Bear book was published in 2010.
Illustrators
illustrated the first five Little Bear books. In 1964, he won a Caldecott Medal for his children's picture book, Where The Wild Things Are, becoming known for innovative children's books. He died in 2012 at the age of 83.David T. Wenzel illustrated twelve Little Bear books based on episodes of the Little Bear TV series, including To Grandmother's House, The Snowball Fight, and Lucky Little Bear.
Chris Hahner illustrated twelve Little Bear books based on episodes of the Little Bear TV series, including Little Bear's Loose Tooth, I Miss You, Father Bear, and The Toys' Wedding.
Heather Green illustrated Little Bear's New Friend and Little Bear's Valentine, based on The Little Bear Movie and an episode of the Little Bear TV series respectively. As a painter and printmaker with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Arizona, she has had exhibitions in New York and Arizona.
Teri Lee illustrated Father Bear's Special Day and Mother Bear's Picnic, based on episodes of the Little Bear TV series.
Dorothy Doubleday illustrated Little Bear and the Marco Polo, the sixth original Little Bear book, dedicating her illustrations "To my daughter Deirdre, who loved Little Bear."