The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear

I sort of liked the story thanks to the expressive pantomime of the mouse. But then my wife pointed out that the narrator was a con artist using demagoguery to stoke fear in the mouse of a hypothetical enemy in order to appropriate half its food supplies after it had done all the harvesting work. That's a messed up lesson to pass on to children.

We practically wore the cover off of this book we read it so often, it was a long time favorite of my boys, and still is one of mine. In this story the little mouse picks a juicy, red, ripe strawberry, and quickly realize (thanks to the narrator) that big hungry bears love red ripe strawberries and can smell them a mile away, yikes! He goes through a series of funny attempts to hide the strawberry from the bear, and in the end, sharing wins. The illustrations are soft and warm, and perfectly depict little mouses feelings on every page. A sweet and funny story!

I love this book for many reasons. First, I have emotional ties to this book. It was the first book my younger brother, who has a learning disability, was able to read and understand on his own. Another thing that I like about this book was the way it was written. Instead of third or first person, the narrator is talking to the little mouse character. It is a refreshing change of perspectives. I have yet to see another children's book use this technique. The way it is written relies on the reader to use their comprehension skills to follow along with the conversation between the narrator and wordless mouse. For example, the book starts "Hello, little Mouse. What are you doing? Oh, I see. Are you going to pick that red, ripe strawberry?" show more The mouse never answers but stands next to a strawberry with a latter and a smile. For my brother who had a real difficulty comprehending anything he read, this book was a great tool to use. Finally, I liked the plot twist at the end. The whole time the narrator was trying to help the mouse hide the strawberry from the bear, but he/she really was tricking the mouse into sharing the strawberry. There is no real moral or big message to the story other than to entertain the reader. show less

In this book, a mouse picks a strawberry. The narrator warns the mouse that a big hungry bear is coming to get the strawberry and eventually convinces the mouse to share it with them. The bear never makes an appearance. I love this book and so do my students. I've read it in both english and french (in an immersion classroom setting) and the drama and excitement comes across even when the students don't understand the words. I also find it helps a lot with french vocabulary as the kids are motivated to learn the words to better understand the exciting plot. I also really love this book as an introduction of an unreliable narrator. At the end of the book I always ask, "Where is the bear? Do you think there is a real bear?"

The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and THE BIG HUNGRY BEAR is one of my most favorite children’s fictional books for two specific reasons: the point of view, and the illustrations. Throughout the book each of these reasons support the message of the story to its readers: don’t let fear prevent you from doing or getting what you want.

First, the narrator’s point of view enables this story to be very funny, unique, and engaging. The reader becomes aware that the point of view is of a narrator based off the first page which reads, “Hello, little Mouse. What are you doing?” The next page reads, “Oh, I see. You are going to pick that red, ripe strawberry?” Also, I love how the mouse looks as though he is looking show more directly at the readers, as though we are really conversing with the little mouse. Furthermore, I feel as though it is the narrator who is putting fear in the little mouse. Thus, the message of the story is derived from the narrator. The little mouse should not fear what the narrator is saying, and do what he wishes.

Next, the illustrations are absolutely fabulous throughout the whole book! I especially loved a particular page where the whole page looks as though it is shaking. The little mouse is holding the strawberry, and looks absolutely terrified. The text that coincides with this picture reads, “The big hungry Bear can smell a red, ripe strawberry a mile away…” So, the picture is showing how scared he is of this unseen bear.

Read this book! It’s such a cute read! show less

SUMMARY:
A little mouse picks a strawberry, and the reader explains that bears LOVE strawberry's. The mouse tries many ways to hide from the bear, but the reader informs the little mouse there is only one way to keep the bear away! That one way is to cut it into two pieces and share it with the reader.
PERSONAL REACTION:
I thought this was a very cute book. The illustrations of the little mouse are precious. You can truly see the fear in his eyes! I also liked how the reader is an actual main character of the story.
CLASSROOM EXTENSION:
This would be a great asset to a lesson about sharing. Each child could bring a snack to share with the classroom as they read this story.
I also think this would be a great way to introduce a lesson on show more healthy foods. The teacher could bring in fresh strawberries for the classroom, and explain how important eating right is. Anything ranging from a tiny mouse to a big bear needs to eat a healthy diet! show less

This is another favorite from my childhood and one that my mother and I read together frequently. A mouse has picked a nice red ripe strawberry and now has to hide it from a hungry bear who loves red ripe strawberries. The narrator tells the mouse that he could try to put a disguise on the strawberry or lock it up. But the best way to get rid of it is to cut it in two and to share half of it. The illustrations are colorful and fun; the mouse and the strawberry both wear matching Groucho Marx glasses. This is a must-have addition to any story time or bedtime but can also be a great tool in the classroom to teach the importance of sharing and helping those in a time of need.