Polar Bear Night

The plot was a tad too simple and happy-go-lucky for my taste (alibi I am not the target audience), and the illustration style was kind of risky; when it worked, though, it was pretty magical.

Something stirs the little polar bear cub from her sleep and she journeys across the land, seeing all the other animals still peacefully sleeping, until she climbs a snow mountain where she can watch a shower of stars across the sky. The light from the shower fills the land and "light up everything the little bear loves." The text is calming and flows peacefully, almost like poetry; as a bedtime book, this is what every parent dreams of. The full-page, linocut illustrations (which won a New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Children's Book award) are soothing in their simplicity, created in muted tones that complement the text. When the star show is finished, the cub realizes that she is sleepy and heads back home to sleep with show more her mama. Children will delight in pointing out and naming the animals on each page. An excellent choice for a bedtime or naptime story. Highly recommended as a read-aloud for ages 2-5. show less

A young polar bear awakens in the night and goes for a walk, passing by the other sleeping animals before witnessing a beautiful "star shower."

This book seems like a perfect bedtime story; it is soothing and calm in both its text and illustrations. There is a basic plot, but it is not fast-paced nor moralizing. The award-winning illustrations are interesting; they are not striking per se but they suit the story well (simple yet declarative, just like the text), especially with their muted colors reflecting the nighttime setting.

This is of the sort of picture book I call "dreamy" - no real storyline, very calming, perfect for bedtime. (Most "dreamy" books ARE bedtime books, in fact.)

The polar bear leaves his mom, sees that all sorts of animals are sleeping, sees the northern lights, and goes back home. Not much of a story, but you don't read these sorts of books for the story, you read them for the illustrations (which are very nice) and for the calming effect and homey feelings.

A fairly bland story with a trace of schmaltz, but you can't go far wrong with a polar bear cub and ice-cool illustration.

A polar bear cub wakes up in the middle of the night, feeling as if something was calling her. She ventures outsides, waiting for something to happen. As she waits, she sees a beautiful sight of falling stars and bright lights. Once the spectacle ends and the quietness ensue, she heads back home, to her mother.

Follow this adventurous cub into the cold night and see a meteor shower and the aurora lights. The story is easy for readers to follow and the moderate pace will make the readers turn to the next page. The cute little polar bear cub’s adventure is also wonderfully portrayed in the artwork. The illustrations are done with linocuts technique, giving them depth while being simple. The use of rice paper also gives the illustration show more a unique pattern.

After reading this book, the readers will want to see the spectacle the cub was able to see. It might lead the readers to a planetarium in search for the light. The readers will not be able to put this book down. show less

This book was wonderfully illustrated, with clear pictures. I would use this for a story time with younger kids, but it's really not suitable for a more lively story time group. Nevertheless, it nicely illustrates different animals in the arctic, has nice color differencials between pages, and tells a simple story.