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Description
This lovingly rendered, meditative book on friendship is sure to find a permanent place on the bedside table With sparse text and a deceptively simple, beautiful design, author/illustrator Kazue Takahashi brings to life the world of Kuma-Kuma Chan, which loosely translates from the Japanese as "cute little bear." Making its first appearance in English, this charming book for preschoolers and readers of all ages poses the question, "How might my friend, a solitary bear, choose to spend his days?" The soft, almost dreamlike illustrations are accompanied by single sentences, making it easy for emerging readers to follow along. Daily chores and seasonal activities become infused with special meaning when they are performed by this adorable creature. Kuma-Kuma Chan goes about his days in contented solitude, engaged in activities such as eating breakfast, gazing at clouds, listening to the rain, writing letters, and wondering where to go with his new bag. At night he watches the sky darken and brushes his teeth before bed. He gardens in the spring, trims his hair in summer, composes a love song in the fall, and seeks a warm, sunny spot on the floor in the winter. Children and adults alike will take delight in repeating aloud the name of their new, steadfast storybook friend and look forward to spending more time in his imagined world.… (more)
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User reviews
Originally published in Japan in 2001 and translated into English in 2014, Kuma-Kuma Chan, the Little Bear is less of a story than it is a series of imaginings, on the part of the narrator (the author?), and as such it had a dreamlike quality that I found gently appealing. I found myself pondering, after finishing it, the narrative expectations we bring to picture-books, and whether this is culturally specific. I know of at least one person who finds this little book "weird." Do we have more of an expectation of a linear narrative development here in the states, than in Japan? However that may be, this is an appealing little book, one which features adorable artwork - Kuma-Kuma Chan is simply depicted, and yet Takahashi captures changing expression just by varying eyebrows, or putting in a single facial line to indicate his pleasure in eating - and an intriguing text. Recommended to anyone looking for sweet and charming animal tales (after a fashion) for younger children, as well as to those interested in Japanese children's literature in translation.