Rabbit and Bear: The Pest in the Nest by Julian Gough and Jim Field
| Rabbit and Bear: The Pest in the Nest by Julian Gough and Jim Field | |
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| Category: Emerging Readers | |
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Reviewer: Sue Magee
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| Summary: A book that's a pleasure to share or to give to an emerging reader - and it could be a godsend to a child with dyslexia. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 112 | Date: January 2017 |
| Publisher: Hodder Children's Books | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-1444934267 | |
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Rabbit was struggling. There he was having a nice, peaceful sleep in his friend Bear's cave when a terrible noise woke him. Was it thunder? No, it was Bear snoring. Very loudly. Rabbit tried putting his paws over his ears although that's not very successful when you have small paws and very big ears. But there was something good: when Rabbit went outside the cave he realised that spring had sprung. Suddenly he felt strong. After a winter spent in his friend Bear's cave it was time to go home to his burrow. Only there was a surprise lurking there - and it looked suspiciously like a snake.
Now, I'm not suggesting that Rabbit is frightened of snakes, but he did rather jump and shouted so loudly that he hurt his own ears before he realised that it was Tortoise. All Rabbit wants is peace and quiet and to be alone, but Tortoise left the burrow so slowly that Rabbit thought he would go mad. Finally, Rabbit managed to fall asleep in the sun and he thought all was going to be well, but that was when the banging started... Woodpecker was nest building. And the day just got worse.
We've all had days like that, haven't we? And children get them too, so it's useful if they can be taught a coping mechanism and for Rabbit this is where Bear came in. Bear took hold of Rabbit very gently and she carried him to the top of the tree. When he was there he could see that woodpecker was just building a nest - and he could also see the view across the trees and the lake. There were mountains behind the mountains behind the mountains and suddenly Rabbit felt a little bit better about his problems, for a little while. It's about perspective. But of course Woodpecker wasn't finished with the nest building and the banging started again.
That was when Bear helped Rabbit, not to change himself or to change the world, but to change the way that he thought about what was happening. OK, it's a little bit philosophical, but the thoughtful child will see the point that Bear's making. Less thoughtful children will get a lot of fun out of seeing just how annoyed Rabbit gets about events which he really can't change. It's a lovely story about friendship.
It's a lovely book too. I'm reading from the hardback and it's something which will get handed on to younger brothers and sisters (because it's a book for boys and girls) and probably onto the next generation. It's timeless. There's absolutely nothing which is going to make a child think that it's old hat. It could be a godsend for the child with dyslexia: the clear font makes it ideal for an emerging reader and the good quality paper means that there's no bleed-through from the reverse of the page which can distract a learner or someone suffering from dyslexia. There are no glossy pages and even the lighter pages are off-white which are easier to cope with for anyone with dyslexia. I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to the Bookbag.
We loved the earlier book in the series, too.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Rabbit and Bear: The Pest in the Nest by Julian Gough and Jim Field at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Rabbit and Bear: The Pest in the Nest by Julian Gough and Jim Field at Amazon.com.
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