Spooky story for halloween (Bears in the Night - Stan Berenstain, Jan Berenstain)

Member Name: mumsymary

Product:	Bears in the Night - Stan Berenstain, Jan Berenstain
Date:	14/10/07 (346 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good fun to read , simple words, children love it ,

Disadvantages: None

Bears in the night

This is the first “ghost” story my daughter ever heard. Sally my daughter was born in 1978 this book was published in 1971, I had read it before to children at work.
This book is suitable for children from a very young age it is a Beginner’s book, edited by Dr Seuss published by Random house.

Are you sitting comfortably then I will begin to tell you about the story.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There are 7 bears “In bed” The word “WHOOOOO” is coming through the window the bears in their pyjamas get “out of bed” and go “To the window”. The bears climb “out the window” and “down the tree”. The bears go “over the wall “, “under the bridge” “around the lake "between the rocks" “through the woods” Then “up spook hill” “Whooo”. The bears are spooked , they hastily retreat We see an owl sitting in a tree going Whooo I do not think the bears have seen the owl, “down spook hill ” they return the same way they got up spook hill finally climbing” up the tree “ “In the window” until finally they are “back in bed”.

Words
~~~
The words are great they are repeated often. Children love the repetitiveness and I have known young children who can not read “reading this book” as they are so enthralled with the book and the words they have memorised the words. The words I put in speech marks are in fact the only words of the book.
The words are simple, words an early reader will learn quickly. This is a good book for learning those words for positioning, in, under, on, up down.

Only a few words on each page more as the story progresses. This book is only 32 pages long

Illustrations
~~~~~

The pictures are done in hues of blue gives that night time feel to the pages. The lantern that they carry gives of a yellow light and illuminates the way up spooky hill. The illustrations are great the pages are not fussy the pictures simple. The way the bears bodies are position gives you the feeling that they are sneaking out creeping up spook hill. The bears have super wide eyed expressions on their faces. Babies relate and recognise the face form eyes nose mouth. While reading this story I make sure the children all can see the pictures. This is an easy book for me to do that with as I know the words of by heart


Stan and Jan Bernstein are the authors and illustrators of this book.
I really love this book. Whenever I read it. The of children are transfixed by the story. I read the beginning of the book slowly lingering on the words “up spook hill” then I turn the page and say a scary Whooooooooooooo, hopefully making my children jump. Then the words that repeat the journey down the hill I say quickly to give the children the impression that the bears are hurrying scared down the hill. Phew I exclaim wiping my brow and say the words on the last page “back in bed”. I then turn the pages back to the picture of the owl and say I think it was the own saying whooooo scaring the bears. You weren’t scared were you?



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Now a little about Stan and Jan Bernstein;

Stan and Jan met at art school in Philadelphia and married when Stan came out of the army after the Second World War.
They had been cartoon illustrators in magazines. After the birth of their son they wrote and illustrated a baby book which was published. Jan and Stan have 2 sons. Mike the younger son is also a writer, illustrator of children’s books. In 1962 they began the series of books we know as the Bernstein bears edited by Dr Seuss and published by Random house. Sadly in 2005 at the age of 82 Stan Bernstein died.

Over 250 books with the characters the Bernstein bears have been published. For Christmas 2007 a Bernstein bear book trim the tree a lift the flap book is being published written and illustrated by Jan and her son Mike Bernstein.
So there will be a new fun book for me to read and enjoy 30 + years after I read the first bear book.

If you wish to hear /read the story go to http://edamonth.homestead.com/readBearsInTheNight1 .html here you will hear someone reading the words and see them printed , to be honest not being vain ,I think I read the words better with more atmosphere than the guy you will hear reading .

If you wish to buy Bears in the night . You will be able to find second hand copies, Amazon has 31 from £1.59 . The R.R,P. is £4.99 . You will be able to buy it at this price and less at a lot of bookstores in the high street.

Summary: A humerous book for pre and early readers about some bears ,and thier exploits up spook hill .