Jane Hissey

A kind friend gave this book to my son when he was very small. I read it aloud to both children many many times. Some years later the book was sent to the Goodwill by my well-meaning, tidy spouse who thought the children had outgrown it. When I discovered it missing and learned what had happened I cried. It felt like I'd lost a friend.

That moment marks the conscious awareness of my love affair with illustrated children's books. Since then I've collected a small library of favorites but have yet to replace Little Bear Lost.… (meer)

I'm going to go out on a limb and give it the full five stars. The story is sweet and well-told, but the illustrations--oh, those illustrations!--they're absolutely gorgeous. A note at the end says it might take her a year to produce a book, because of the quality of the illustrations, and I believe it. Stun-ning, and absolutely apt for this charmer of a tale.

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve!… (meer)