The Grizzly Bear Who Lost His GRRRRR!

Written & illustrated by Rob Biddulph

A champion bear loses his growl before a big contest. Can he find it in time?

6.4/7 Bookroo experts·4.0/5 Goodreads · 457 ratings

40 pages· 773 words· Est. 6 min read-aloud

$19.99Save 5%

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Bookroo's summary

Fred, the reigning champion of the forest's bear contest, wakes up to a nightmare—his mighty growl is missing! As the competition looms, Fred must embark on a quest to recover his GRRRRR. But along the way, he might just discover that there's more to life than winning. Will Fred reclaim his roar and learn a valuable lesson about friendship and self-worth?

From the publisher

From the award-winning author and illustrator of Blown Away, Rob Biddulph, comes a delightfully hilarious story about a grizzly bear named Fred who loses his GRRRRR. Each year, for as long as the forest has stood, a contest is held for the bears of the wood… Fred is the champion. He’s the best. But being the best takes time and training, especially when it comes to having the loudest growl. Then, one morning, disaster strikes—Fred’s GRRRRR is gone! Oh, no! Will Fred find his GRRRRR and realize that there’s more to life than being a winner?

At a glance

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 40
Words: 773
Reading age: 4–8
Audience: Picture
Lexile: AD520L

Themes & topics

Books about making friends Books about losing Books about bullying Books about friendship Books about teamwork

The Bookroo review

What our editors thought of this book

The Grizzly Bear Who Lost His GRRRRR! is at its core the ideal read aloud. The cadence and rhyme scheme trip off the tongue as readers follow our favorite triangular grizzly bear on his journey of self-discovery from self-centeredness and an obsession with winning to a place where friendship rules supreme to the point of mercy. Biddulph’s award-winning illustration style creates images that are as engaging as the text itself, seamlessly switching between comic-book and more traditional style illustrations. The utilization of popping fonts in just the right amount and inclusion of delightful details (such as the flirtatious bunny to watch for on every spread, video game-like scores, etc.) that will continue to emerge through multiple readings add to the re-readability. Sensitive readers may be off-put by the bear event involving scaring of humans or the underwear perenially hanging from the stag’s antlers in the background, but choosing to focus on this minutiae at the cost of enjoying this book to the fullest would be a mistake. What do we discover about the looming and moustached Boris? With Fred’s decision to invite Boris “round for dinner” rather than ostracize him for his thievery, we’re reminded that Boris isn’t a bad guy, he just did a bad thing—an important distinguishment for children who need to be reminded that they are not their mistakes.

The verdict

“An annual roaring competition provides a platform for a sweet lesson about mistakes.”

Bookroo Editorial

Reviewed September 2019

6.4/7

Good to know

Stories behind the story

Where did you get the idea for GRRRRR!?

The problem with ideas is you never know when you’re going to get one. Also they often disappear as quickly as they arrive. So I have a google doc permanently open on my phone and am sure to make a quick note whenever and wherever inspiration strikes. This is what happened with GRRRRR!: I was in the car listening to an easy listening radio station called Magic FM and a song by a band called Everything But The Girl came on. For some reason I thought “Ooh, ‘Everything But The GRRRRR’ would make a good title for a picture book” so I made a note. A few days later I had a longer think about who could be missing this GRRRRR and, for some reason, I decided that a story about a prize-winning bear who lost his growl the day before a loud-growling competition might have potential. I then knuckled down to some sketchbook work and managed to extrapolate a fuller story arc from that original kernel, weaving in a subtle message about friendship and the fact that winning isn’t everything along the way. And so GRRRRR! was born.

What readers & critics say

Reviews

6.4

out of 7

5.8

“I love the rhyming in this book, and love the messages! At the end of the day, we should remember to be thankful friends that support us!”

B is for Bookworm

Trusted reviewer

7.0

“Rob Biddulph is a phenomenal children's book author and illustrator, and I love his work in The Grizzly Bear Who Lost His GRRRRR!. His creative rhyming leads readers through a wonderful tale of the value of competition and friendship, while his fun illustrations bring the story to life.”

The Goodfather

Trusted reviewer

7.0

“This is one of my very favorite recent books. I love the illustrations, I'm an absolute sucker for a great rhyme scheme and the message is phenomenal: friends matter more than winning.”

Marmee

Trusted reviewer

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