Berenstain Bears Books

Bring Home the Bears

• What: Berenstain Bears Books
• When: Age two and up
• Why: Classic characters, wide variety of topics and situations
• Where: Amazon

The Berenstain Bears books have taken off again at our house lately. I have fond memories of Brother and Sister Bear from my own childhood. Now the same characters have made a comeback in our household with even more timely adventures.

I like that you can find a book with these characters to deal with almost any situation, from a new sibling to an impending move to environmentalism. The classic illustrations still delight my kids. The books come in the standard paperback form, but you can also get them in easy readers for beginning reading practice, or to have shorter books on hand. For us, the interest level started around age three. The regular books have a lot of text per page, so once that much reading holds your kid’s interest, check them out. If you want to try the shorter versions, reach for a board book or easy reader, which offer less text per page, and move much quicker when all you want is to get your kids to bed as quickly as possible.

I couldn’t begin to list the numerous titles here, but suffice it to say, if your kid has a special interest or a transition coming up, they probably have a book for that. Mama and Papa Bear tackle everything from trick or treating to lying in a practical manner with no nonsense. And who can resist that treehouse?

Then the next time you encounter a familiar issue, from age three to ten and beyond, you can grab a copy of the appropriate title and read it over and over again. Even if your kids don’t get the lesson behind the story, the friendly characters and open communication speak to kids of all ages.