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Little Bear is excited to receive an invitation to Thanksgiving dinner from his human friend Goldie in this sweet holiday picture-book, first published in 1967. Once his animals friends - Squirrel, Sparrow, Owl, and Squeaky the Mouse - explain what Thanksgiving is, our ursine hero is ready to go. Then he discovers that the holiday occurs in late autumn, and he is dismayed - how will he ever stay up, in order to attend? Fortunately, his friends are more than willing to help him out, ensuring that he is awake on the important day...

One of seven picture-book from author Janice and illustrator Mariana devoted to the adventures of this ursine character, Little Bear's Thanksgiving pairs a gentle narrative with cute artwork. I was already familiar with the work of illustrator Mariana (full name: Marian Foster Curtiss), having read a few of her Miss Flora McFlimsey picture-books, so I picked this up from my library's Thanksgiving display with a sense of anticipation. I found the narrative engaging, and occasionally quite amusing. The fact that a whisper of "pumpkin pie" managed to bring Little Bear awake, for instance, had me chuckling. The artwork was cute, although I think I prefer Marian's depiction of the animals, compared to that of Goldie. I don't know that I enjoyed this one quite as much as the Miss Flora McFlimsey books, but it was sweet enough that I would probably read another in the series, if I happened upon it. Perhaps Little Bear's Christmas? Recommended to anyone looking for gentle, warmhearted animal stories set at Thanksgiving. ( )