Ryan T. Higgins

Grouchy Bruce the bear didn't like holidays. He didn't like Easter, Christmas, or Thanksgiving, and he definitely didn't like Halloween! When his family of mice and geese decide to correct this issue by enacting a retelling of The Legend of Soggy Hollow, with Bruce in the leading role of Ichabod Bruce, things don't go quite to plan. As Bruce flees from his "intended," the lovely Miss Camilla van Moofle (played by a moose), he encounters the real horseless horseman in the woods...

A clear show more send-up of Washington Irving's classic tale of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, this eighth picture book about Bruce the bear and the geese and mice he cares for was a hoot! Bruce and the Legend of Soggy Hollow pairs an amusing narrative, full of silly humor children will find entertaining—fleeing from kisses, inadvertently falling in with a real ghost—with appealing artwork that ably captures the zany hijinks in the text. I'm reading this one out of season, as it has been on request at my library since I discovered its existence, and it only recently became available. That said, it was still quite entertaining, regardless of the time of year, and is one I would recommend to picture book readers who have enjoyed other tales about this blustery bear and his unconventional family. show less

That grumpy bear, Mother Bruce, is back in this amusing board book, resisting all efforts to get him to join the fun. As the counting kicks off with "1 grumpy bear," a series of animals appear, all joining the party started by the three mice (naturally). At the end of the book however, the reader still encounters "1 grumpy bear...."

Having enjoyed all eight of the large-format picture books about Bruce and his family of goslings and mice, I picked up 1 Grumpy Bruce: A Counting Book with some show more anticipation, sure that (if nothing else) I would appreciate author/illustrator Ryan T. Higgins' droll artwork. Happily, I can report that this is in fact the case—as always, the visuals here tickle my funny bone, as Bruce resists all efforts at getting him to be less grouchy—but I was also amused by the text itself. I don't think I've seen a counting book before that starts at 1, and ends up at 1 again, at the conclusion. That device allows Higgins to tell a little story, in a simple board book that might otherwise only be about numbers and counting. Recommended to fans of Bruce and his adventures, and to those looking for fun counting books for babies. show less

When Bruce rejects fun one too many times in this seventh picture book devoted to his adventures, the mice secretly wish that he would change, becoming more cheerful, more adventurous, and more full of pizazz. Little do they realize that Bruce's fun-loving cousin Kevin is on the way, arriving the same day Bruce himself takes off on a fishing trip. Convinced that their wishes have come true, the mice (and geese) enjoy the chaotic hijinks at first, but soon discover that this new "Bruce" might show more be fun, but he isn't particularly attuned to their needs, or even their safety. Could it be that too much fun isn't a good thing, and that Bruce was fine as we was...?

Featuring the same sly sense of humor and underlying goodheartedness (grumpy blue bears notwithstanding) as it predecessors, The Bruce Swap was a fun adventure with these appealing characters. As always, I appreciated the eponymous ursine character's gruff grouchiness, and the fact that, underneath it all, this is a bear who does truly care. I certainly got a chuckle out of the fact that, returning home, Bruce offers to be more fun, only to be met with emphatic denials. This emphasizes that, in the end, what Bruce brings to the table is something more valuable than "fun." He is that solidly dependable parent who sees to the needs of his children, and ensures their welfare, even if not always a barrel of laughs. In short: he is a parental figure, rather than a friend, something the mice and geese come to appreciate, when his steadying influence is removed. Recommended to fans of "Mother Bruce" and his brood, as well as to those picture book readers looking for stories which emphasize the idea of being careful what you wish for, and of solid dependability being more important in a parent, than "pizazz." show less

Mother Bruce and his gosling charges return in this amusing early reader, part of Disney-Hyperion's World of Reading collection. As the goslings decide they want to learn ballet, Bruce finds himself dispatched to town on a series of errands, obtaining ballet slippers, tights and tutus—all with great trouble—only to find that his troublesome flock's attention has moved on, in the end...

Author/illustrator Ryan T. Higgins' trademark sense of humor is very much evident in Ballet Bruce, as show more our long-suffering ursine hero does his best to satisfy his goslings, despite his disinclination to go to such trouble. The repetitive nature of the tale, with Bruce's many errands, lends itself to the early reader purpose of building reading skills, while the accompanying illustrations capture the droll humor. Recommended to Mother Bruce fans who are learning to read. show less