In their blended family, Mama Duck worries when Bear eats too much jam, but when the ducklings play a game with their vegetables, Bear starts to eat the strange green things on his plate.
Such a great book about picky eating! I love Bear and his personality. You also know he has a pretty great mom for helping him learn to balance out his diet. :)
We enjoy Ciara Gavin’s books featuring Bear and his family of ducks. This tale of Bear’s love for jam is especially enjoyable. The ducks’ attempts to help Bear expand his tastes will be familiar to anyone with a young reader who is also a picky eater.
I really like this series! This lovable blended family of ducks and a bear is humorous while simultaneously tackling real-life issues… in this case picky eating. The illustrations are fantastic and the love of a family seeps through every page in a delightful way.
Ciara Gavin is an author and illustrator of picture books for children. Her titles include Room for Bear, Bear is Not Tired, Randal the Elephant and A Little Bit Worried which was illustrated by Tim Warnes. She lives and works in Dublin, Ireland.
Ciara thinks children are the best artists in the world and her dream is to one day draw as freely and joyfully as children do.
Ciara says: ‘When I make my books, I make a lot of mistakes, sometimes I spills things, break things and colour in outside of the lines but I just keep going because that is how everything in life is made including picture books.’
She thinks every home should have a cosy corner, chocolate orange biscuits, white paper and a pencil because that is all you need to get started on your own big dream.
So we’re curious–does Bear’s love for jam stem from your own or your son’s love for jam? Or was it just a fun idea that came to you?
We both love jam. I decided to collect my empty jam jars and use them as spice jars and I was a little shocked at how many I collected in a short space of time so that alerted me to our out of control jam habit.
Also, my son has always been a fussy eater and getting him to try new and healthy foods was a real preoccupation for a time. I tried to come up with fun ways to make new foods less daunting. Some of the tricks I tried are the same as what the ducks try to encourage Bear’s healthy eating.
What is your favorite thing about Bear?
My favorite thing about Bear is his sweet and gentle nature and how much he loves his duck family.