School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-Hare loves bears and wants to catch one. He gets a copy of The Best Book of Bear Hunting and starts following the necessary steps. Bring a friend ("Choose one that looks much fatter than you!"), gather the right equipment, and begin trailing the bear. Watch for footprints and listen for sounds. Hare's friend Rumbly Rabbit questions the wisdom of the entire endeavor, but the two follow the instructions word for word. After a while they come face to face with a cub that growls, "I'm hungry!" That's bad news for rabbits, but suddenly the bear's mama calls him for dinner and he runs home. The two rabbits turn to the last page of the book, which informs them that bears love to eat rabbits. That causes them to scamper on home themselves. The pictures are large and clear. The rabbits look soft and cuddly, as do the bears. The background is lush and green, and the woods are full of blooming flowers. It's all very cheerful, but it's never clear why Hare has such a fixation on catching a bear. Despite the endearing illustrations, this book is not a first purchase.-Ieva Bates, Ann Arbor District Library, MI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.