The Christmas Bear

From Booklist Ages 4-7. The art's the thing here, and there's so much to see that children will want to pore over this before and after Christmas. The hook on which the story hangs is the tumble of a curious polar bear right through a hole in the snow into Santa's study. Santa takes Cub on a tour of the property, and this is what readers will enjoy. The panoramic two-page spreads and individual panels begin at the top of the world and continue through the workshops, into the kitchen and the wrapping room (where long, colorful sheets of paper hang from the ceiling), and off to the barn. Best of all is the toy storage room. Dolls, bears, trucks, tops, robots--of every conceivable shape and size--fill the gigantic space. Talk about a kid in a candy store! Readers can plan their Christmas gifts 10 times over. There's no real story to speak of, and in the end, not surprisingly, Cub gets a ride home in the sleigh. But this is a delight to look at, like a Christmas tree sparkling with lights. Ilene Cooper --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.