The Berenstain Bears Learn About Strangers

I am in general no fan of the Berenstain Bears books,* which annoy me on multiple levels: didacticism, role-based names ("Brother" and "Sister" and "Mama" and "Papa"), gender-stereotyped parental roles .... but this one was pretty well done for the "don't talk to strangers" genre. It addressed not just the "don't go with strangers", but also how not to be unnecessarily afraid of strangers, too, which I appreciated.

* Note -- My 6yo has loved these Berenstain Bears books since discovering them at 3yo. So, I read them even though I'm not a fan. Her perspective is at least as important as mine, in this review!

When it comes to children's series that provide life lessons under the guise of entertaining stories, Berenstain Bears is at the top of the class. Need a book to teach kids about doctor visits, first days of school, or learning how to share? Look no further than the familiar and friendly family of Berenstain Bears. As the title suggests, this particular book provides some life lessons on dealing with strangers.

The story begins with Sister's sweet but naive familiarity with everyone. She is friends with the world. She likes to say hello to every single bear she meets and have conversations with the first bear she sees in the park. Brother Bear is worried. He talks to their parents about Sister's over-familiarity with bears she doesn't show more know. Papa decides to solve the problem by showing sister newspaper articles about bad bears and abductions, to scare her away from strangers.

His plan works a little too well. Sister does stay away from strangers, but at a cost. The world suddenly looks like a bleak and dangerous place to her. No one, and no place, is safe. Seeing her daughter's melancholy, Mama Bear decides to step in. She helps Sister understand that most strangers are good bears, but the occasional rotten apple has a hidden worm. Sister learns how to balance her kind heart with more prudence, and all is well in the Bear family again. As is often the case, Papa Bear is portrayed as well-meaning but ineffectual, and Mama Bear is the one to solve the problem. I dislike this unfair representation of fathers, which is typical of of the series, but other than that complaint, I like the book. I appreciate the way it handles its central issue. The authors emphasize the necessity for caution, but not at the expense of losing trust in humanity. This is exactly the lesson I want my girls to learn. Also, the story and its appealing illustrations, using familiar characters, is fun and easy to read. My daughters love reading Berenstain Bear stories, and they don't even realize they are learning important lessons. show less

I am in general no fan of the Berenstain Bears books,* which annoy me on multiple levels: didacticism, role-based names ("Brother" and "Sister" and "Mama" and "Papa"), gender-stereotyped parental roles .... but this one was pretty well done for the "don't talk to strangers" genre. It addressed not just the "don't go with strangers", but also how not to be unnecessarily afraid of strangers, too, which I appreciated.[return][return]* Note -- My 6yo has loved these Berenstain Bears books since discovering them at 3yo. So, I read them even though I'm not a fan. Her perspective is at least as important as mine, in this review!

I like that this book is centered on guiding children through solid advice about not talking to strangers and putting safety first. The author did a fine job with expressing good advice through children's experiences outside of home and with their parents. It teaches readers to respect their parents. The illustrations also did a fine job with expressing the daughter's emotional changes throughout the story. The mother shares the phrase, "There'll always be a couple of bad apples in every barrel". The key message is not to talk to strangers and to listen to your parents.

I really enjoyed reading this book because it was informative but also not losing touch of the fictional theme. It is important for students to know at a young age to not talk to strangers and I feel like that theme was emphasized very well throughout the book. It allows the reader to comprehend strangers and safety. As a student, attending schools opens them up to the world and they are too young to understand how scary and dangerous it can be, that is why this book should be read early on so it is implemented sooner than later. The way the book was worded and illustrated is the perfect audience for K-3rd grade. The story explains how “you can’t always tell from the outside which are the ‘bad apples.’” The mother bear cuts show more the apple open and show how a worm is growing in the apple. This visual example is far easier to show students how even if a stranger looks trustworthy that you cannot always tell. The big theme to take away from the book is that that not all strangers are trustworthy, using common sense is the best bet. show less

I liked the story in that the book was informative while also sticking to a fantasy story theme. The message of never talking to strangers is emphasized in the main theme. I liked how the book makes the reader think about strangers and overall safety. Students need to know stranger safety early on and this book is a great tool to implement that. The writing and illustrations are helpful in the story by showing a metaphor about strangers. The story explains how “you can’t always tell from the outside which are the ‘bad apples.’” The mother bear cuts the apple open and show how a worm is growing in the apple. This visual example is far easier to show students how even if a stranger looks trustworthy that you cannot always tell. show more The big theme to take away from the book is that that not all strangers are trustworthy, using common sense is the best bet. show less

This book was a bit different from the other books in the series, however I still really enjoyed this one. The poem at the beginning of the book explains what the books concept is: “Bear country is sage when every small cub there learns some special lessons from ma and papa bear.” This book centers on the concept of “stranger danger” for young children. This book had the classic characteristics of the Berenstain Bear books that I love, including the bright, interactive and classic illustrations of everyone’s favorite bear family. This book, like many in the series, places emphasis on family and the everyday lives of a majority of the children in the books targeted age group. One thing I noticed in the book that children really show more enjoy is that many of the expressions and reactions of the bear family are written in large, colored letters in the pictures. For example, the words YIPE! Or HELLO! are written in a very interactive for the children reading the stories. Finally, one aspect of this particular book that made it different than others in the series is the last page of the book actually contained a list of “rules for cubs.” I thought this was a great idea and was a really appealing element of this book. Children love to have their rules laid out and this book not only provided an interactive story for the children to learn about stranger danger, but also contained a useful reminder at the end of the book that parents also could take and use as rules for their own children. All in all, it was a great concept and the different elements of the book and how it was constructed really appealed to me as a reader. show less