Book Review: The Bear Went Over the Mountain by Iza Trapani

Title: The Bear Went Over the Mountain
Told and Illustrated by Iza Trapani
Sky Pony Press
On Sale: April 2012
ISBN: 978-1-61608-510-0
Price: $16.95
Ages: 4-8

Summmary:

A bear goes over the mountain to see what he can see, hear what he can hear, smell what he can smell, touch what he can touch, and taste what he can taste; what a busy bear! When he sets out on a sunny morning in spring he uses all five of his senses to explore the world around him. He smells a skunk (yuck!) and sweet honeysuckle vines (yum!). He sees dragonflies and fuzzy ducklings, he hears crickets chirping, he touches a soft flower blossom, and more! When the chill of autumn comes creeping up over the mountain, he goes back to his cave for a snuggly sleep.

With warm, beautiful watercolors and playful, evocative words, Iza Trapani extends this classic children’s song to teach young children about the five senses and the four seasons. It’s so much fun that kids will want to go out exploring, just like the bear!

Review:

I am sure many of you are familiar with the children’s song, “The Bear Went Over the Mountain” that is sung to the tune of “For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow”. Now Iza Trapani has taken and created a great children’s book based on this song. The verses are worded to show what the bear would touch, hear, smell, see, and taste while out on an adventure. The book ends with the bear settling in his den for what I would assume to be hibernation.

This book is well illustrated and vividly portrays the bear’s adventure, which does bring him some misfortune along the way. He meets a skunk, porcupine, and at one point races away from bees, but still the bear happily continues along on his adventure. My children thoroughly enjoyed The Bear Went Over the Mountain. Even though I’m not much of a singer, my girls thought it was a great update to the classic children’s song.

About the Author:

Iza Trapani is a bestselling children’s book author and illustrator known for her popular extensions of nursery rhymes. Iza’sretelling of The Itsy Bitsy Spider has sold over a million copies and all her books are widely used in the United States and abroad. Among her awards are the IRA/CBC Children’s Choices, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Book Awards, ABA Pick of the Lists, and Bank Street College of Education Best Books. When she’s not in her studio, Iza likes to spend time outdoors and has gone over many mountains to see what she could see. Iza lives near Kingston, New York.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book for review. The thoughts and feelings expressed are my own. No other compensation was received to produce this review.

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