First sentence: Ding-dong! Bear and Bird had a big day planned. Bird was early. "I'll be out in a minute," shouted Bear from his big bed. "I haven't just woken up. I promise!"

Premise/plot: Bear and Bird is the first in a new early chapter book series. Bear and Bird are friends--dear, close friends. However, Bear and Bird have many differences. These short chapters, short stories, are interconnected--loosely. The first two stories are definitely closely related.

The stories/chapters are: "The Flower," "The Picnic," "The Painting," "The Blanket."

My thoughts: I loved, loved, loved, loved this book. The writing is WONDERFUL.

Quotes:

This is from "The Flower" chapter:

"Sorry I'm late!" said Bear. "I thought my feet would move quicker than they did."

This is from the "Picnic" chapter:

"Have you used the bathroom?" said Bird.
"Yes," said Bear.
Bear had not used the bathroom.
"Did you pack the music player?" said Bird.
"Yes," said Bear.
Bear had not packed the music player.
"And the lawn chairs?" said Bird.
"Yes," said Bear.
No lawn chairs either.
"And most importantly--have you packed the picnic?" said Bird.
There was a bit of a pause before Bear said, "Yes, I've packed the picnic."
Bear had not packed the picnic. ( )

Delightful illustrations and unexpectedly funny ( )