Synopses & Reviews
The authors of If You Were a Penguin, Wendell and Florence Minor, turn their attention to bears in the educational picture book If You Were a Panda Bear.
If You Were a Panda Bear introduces different types of bears to young children. Through the poems in this charming storybook, kids will learn that pandas are shy and eat bamboo, black bears love to climb trees, and grizzly bears can be up to ten feet tall. A section at the back includes even more fun animal facts.
The full-color illustrations are playful and bring the personality of each bear wonderfully to life.
Review
Praise for If You Were a Penguin: “Wendells vibrant large-scale figures, set against bracing polar landscapes, have enough personality to captivate a crowd.” ALA Booklist
Review
Praise for If You Were a Penguin: “A playful and lightly informative look at the life of penguins...an excellent storytime addition.” School Library Journal
Review
“A global array of bears parade by in this delightful story for the very young. A lovely title to engage the imaginations and interest of budding animal enthusiasts.” Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
If you were a Panda bear,
Guess what you would wear?
A black-and-white suit
And eye patches—how cute!
You'd be very shy,
You'd eat lots of bamboo.
Then you'd take a long nap—
What a good thing to do!
Everyone knows black bears are black, but did you know they can climb trees? Which kind of bear has funny hair? Which one loves catching fish?
Wendell and Florence Minor celebrate the varied personalities of a parade of bears in this spirited collection of poems about our most playful—and lovable—friends.
About the Author
Florence Minor is the author of
Christmas Tree!, illustrated by Wendell Minor, which
Kirkus Reviews praised for its "imaginative Christmas trees and poetic, rhyming text."
If You Were a Penguin, her second collaboration with Wendell, was selected by Pennsylvania for its "One Book, Every Young Child" early literacy program.
If You Were a Panda Bear is her third picture book for children.
Wendell Minor is the illustrator of more than fifty award-winning picture books for children, including Mojave by Diane Siebert, Abe Lincoln Remembers by Ann Turner, The Seashore Book by Charlotte Zolotow, and the New York Times bestseller Reaching for the Moon by Buzz Aldrin, as well as numerous books about the outdoors with his frequent collaborator, Jean Craighead George, including their classic Everglades.
The Minors live in Connecticut, where they share their home and studio with their cats, Sofie and Cindercat.
Wendell Minor has illustrated numerous award-winning picture books, including Reaching for the Moon by Buzz Aldrin, Galapagos George by Jean Craighead George, and If You Were a Panda Bear by his wife, Florence Minor. Mr. Minor's art has been exhibited at the Norman Rockwell Museum, among other prestigious institutions throughout the country. He lives in rural Connecticut with Florence and their two cats.