Horrible Bear!

by Ame Dyckman Narrated by Ame Dyckman

Overview

The New York Times-bestselling duo behind Wolfie the Bunny presents a hilarious read-aloud about accidents, outbursts, manners...and the power of saying "I'm sorry."

Bear didn't mean to break a little girl's kite, but she's upset anyway--upset enough to shout "HORRIBLE BEAR!" Bear can't believe it. He's not horrible! But now he's upset, too--upset enough to come up with a truly Horrible Bear idea. In this charming but goofy picture book, readers will learn all about tempers, forgiveness, and friendship as Bear prepares to live up to his formerly undeserved reputation while the little girl realizes that maybe--just maybe--Bear isn't as horrible as she thought.

Editorial Reviews

The New York Times Book Review - Maria Russo

Dyckman and OHora…specialize in full-spectrum emotion and offbeat charm…The art is a blast—even at her surliest, the girl will win smiles with her gigantic red curls.

Publishers Weekly

★ 01/25/2016
With wit and tenderness, Dyckman and OHora, the duo behind 2015’s Wolfie the Bunny, introduce two creatures who are absolutely furious with each other. A bear inadvertently crushes a kite that belongs to a girl with a mop of red hair. “Horrible bear!” she shouts, and stomps home. Angry at the girl’s unfair condemnation (“She barged in!”) Bear hatches a plan to get back at her: “It was a Horrible Bear idea.” True to the way people process feelings at different speeds, Horrible Bear arrives at the girl’s house just as she accidentally damages a toy and realizes that the bear’s misdeed was an accident, too. “I’m sorry!” she tells him, “And all the horrible went right out of Bear.” OHora works his goofy magic everywhere, observing the way anger causes ridiculous mishaps (the bear stomps through the girl’s laundry and arrives festooned with clothespins) and affects innocent bystanders (a puzzled, picnicking goat). Dyckman and OHora portray genuine forgiveness without a hint of moralizing. Ages 3–6. Author’s agent: Scott Treimel, Scott Treimel N.Y. Illustrator’s agent: Sean McCarthy, Sean McCarthy Literary Agency. (Apr.)

From the Publisher

Praise for Horrible Bear!:
A 2020 Book to Treasure


"As fun as a theme park ride... Dyckman and OHora specialize in full-spectrum emotion and offbeat charm."



—New York Times Book Reveiw

*"Molly Bang's Sophie finally has a worthy shelf-mate for absolutely spot-on characterizations of mood. VERDICT: Highly recommended for picture book collections." —School Library Journal, Starred Review

*"A perfectly over-the-top look at tantrums, friendship, and forgiveness that is sure to resonate with preschoolers and parents alike." —Booklist, Starred Review

*"OHora works his goofy magic everywhere."—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"Dyckman and OHora's lively conflict-resolution-in-picture-book's-clothing is as entertaining as it is instructive". —The Horn Book

"A charmingly loud and lighthearted friendship story." —Kirkus Reviews

"Every element of the book - right down to the endpapers and boards - contributes meaning and whimsy to the story."—Bookpage

"A picture-book exploration of temper and forgiveness made vivid by Zachariah OHora's fun, noisy illustrations."—The Wall Street Journal

"Absolutely beautiful!"—The Globe and Mail

"Author Dyckman has a knack for combining humor with emotional truths, and illustrator OHora delivers a charming spitfire of a character with a mess of red curls as unruly as her emotions."—Common Sense Media

School Library Journal

★ 01/01/2016
PreS-Gr 2—In the mind of a child, mistakes are often misinterpreted as malfeasance, and the resultant anger can be contagious. Dyckman writes a simple story about just such a mistake. A little girl loses her kite in a bear's den, and when he rolls over in his sleep, he crushes it and becomes a HORRIBLE BEAR! Though the little girl seems to have some strategies to deal with anger (reading, painting, talking it out), it isn't until she mistakenly tears her own stuffed animal's ear that she gets some clarity about what really happened in that cave, and in her heart. Meanwhile, the bear is trying out his own righteous anger, charging to the little girl's house for a stand-off. A simple "I'm sorry" turns horrible into sweet. In reality, such spontaneous forgiveness and acceptance are rare, but cutting to the chase does readers no harm here. OHora's acrylic paint on paper illustrations are vivid and childlike. Thick black lines miraculously convey a range of emotions, and the girl's pile of bright red hair with black curlicues serves as a metaphor for both her anger and her exuberance. Molly Bang's Sophie finally has a worthy shelf-mate for absolutely spot-on characterizations of mood. VERDICT Highly recommended for picture book collections.—Lisa Lehmuller, Paul Cuffee Maritime Charter School, Providence, RI

Kirkus Reviews

2016-01-09
A freckle-faced white child with a mass of red curls piled three times the height of her head is flying her kite near a snowcapped mountaintop when—"snap!"—the string breaks, and the toy is blown into a sleeping bear's cave, coming to rest on his belly. Readers are cued into the nonscary absurdity as they observe the orange-furred bear napping in a Froggy Hollow Summer Camp T-shirt stretched across his huge belly, a tiny teddy bear tucked in his arm. As the girl reaches for her kite, the bear rolls over, crushing it: "crunch!" The girl is shocked into a fit of righteous anger, blaming the bear for breaking her toy. "HORRIBLE BEAR!"—and so begins the refrain of her angry tantrum. The team that brought readers the adorable Wolfie the Bunny (2014) continues their success here. OHora's paintings are boldly colored and layered: a yellow stuffed bunny wears a teal jacket; the purple-and-black-clad little girl strides in red Converse high-top sneakers over a pea-green lawn. The limited language and solid acrylic paintings work together beautifully to convey emotion. When the little girl realizes that the bear didn't break her toy on purpose, one word speaks volumes: "Oh." Her face fills the entire page, her feelings indicated with black dot eyes, a couple of curved lines, and a black dot mouth. A charmingly loud and lighthearted friendship story. (Picture book. 3-5)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940173720214
Publisher:	Hachette Audio
Publication date:	04/02/2019
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	Up to 4 Years

Videos