Julia Sarcone-Roach

This book surprised me! I wish I had discovered it when I was young, but it's just as great to find it as an adult. I knew from the cover and a general description on the book order page that it would be a little bit silly, but I was not expecting the plot twist at the end!

I mentioned it to my sister, who is an early elementary teacher (ages 4 through 7, usually), and she agreed - "it's a good one!" At the most superficial level, it's an exercise for kids to read or listen to the text, which show more describes a forest, while looking at illustrations of a city - an introduction to metaphor and imaginative descriptions. I'm curious about how my 4 year old nephew would react to the story, but I suspect he would be annoyed that the pictures and text don't match. My sister concurs - in her experience, older kids respond a little better.

In particular, the twist at the end is probably the most difficult for the littlest kids to understand, though it's the thing that took this from a book I enjoy to a book I truly love. Perceptive readers will realize the narrator is unreilable: the story about a bear in a strange forest who eats your sandwich is being told by the actual sandwich-eater: a small dog. It's an exercise in tall tales to escape blame! And in the very last page, the dog barks instead of using words - did the little girl even understand the story she was being told? There's so many fun layers to the twist, and I adore it!

The illustrations are a perfect match for the humorous story. They are painterly with visible brushstrokes - gouache, perhaps? - and full of life. Mostly they tend to be yellow or yellow-green, fitting for a sunny day in the park, with accents in blue and orange. The pacing varies as the black bear goes on his adventure, which accentuates the humor and liveliness. The bear itself is almost always shown in the middle of movement - stretching, crouching, climbing, hiding - with the stretch-and-pull technique of cartoons. Really, the illustrations are fantastic.

I'm very happy to add this book to my collection of excellent picture books! show less

After eating all of the berries in a truck and then falling asleep inside, a bear inadvertently finds himself travelling to the city (or does he?) in this delightfully humorous tale from Julia Sarcone-Roach. Once there, the bear explores the many climbing opportunities, interesting smells, and strange 'trees.' He finds new kinds of fun when he reaches a park, and then he stumbled upon a delicious-looking sandwich... Unable to resist, he gobbles it up before fleeing, eventually finding his show more way home again.

This entire story, of course, is related to the little girl whose sandwich it was by a helpful little dog, whose 'Ruff, Ruff, Ruff" disguises his tale. Is he an unreliable narrator, whose story is meant to disguise his own theft of the sandwich? Or does the humor lie in the fact that he is unable to communicate his complicated tale to the girl, who only hears his barking? Whatever the case may be, The Bear At Your Sandwich is delightfully amusing, with droll artwork that greatly adds to the entertainment. The cover illustration is one of my favorites, and makes me chuckle, although all of the bear's expressions are deftly captured throughout. Recommended to anyone who enjoys humorous picture-books, especially those with unreliable narrators. show less

A cat named Muffin thought he/she knew all the nighttime neighborhood sounds until one day a strange "grr" is heard. Can Muffin solve this mystery?

This clever picture book is written in the style of hard-boiled detective fiction, but with a simpler mystery that has a wholesome conclusion. I really enjoyed the writing style and the nods to classic noir mysteries. The illustrations are a perfect complement to the text.

The only reason I don't rate it higher is that the children I shared this show more book with (various ages from 2 on up) didn't seem to quite "get" it. This seems like one of those books that adults will enjoy more the kids. show less

A cat patrols the bakery to keep pests away. One night there's a bear. The bear and the cat may or may not have a little party before the bear moves on, making the title, indeed, true. Kind of noirish. Very fun.