Fast Five Fiction: Fat Bear Week

It's Friday and time for Fast Five Fiction! Each week I share five fiction books: new books, notable books, books around a common theme. We've been celebrating Fat Bear Week at the library with take and makes, a scavenger hunt, livestream bear cam bingo and are having a special Family Storytime this Saturday so today's recommendations are all bear-centric. 

Click the title to be directed to the book in our catalog. Book descriptions are from Goodreads.

Bear has a Belly by Jane Whittingham

In this multilayered Big, Little Concepts book for preschoolers, explore body parts along with animals and celebrate the differences and similarities of our wonderful bodies.

A soft, round belly,
Bear has a belly.
I do too!

Do you have a nose like Fox, cheeks like Squirrel, and a tongue like Frog does? In rhythmic text perfect for an energetic read-aloud, Bear Has a Belly points out Moose's legs, Otter's back, and Duck's feet, inviting little ones to chime in with every body part they share in common. Bright photographs of the animal friends are paired with images of real children of diverse backgrounds and abilities who are joyfully engaging with that body part.

Bear Bottom by Stuart Gibbs

Teddy Fitzroy, his family, and some other FunJungle employees have been invited to visit a bison ranch just outside Yellowstone National Park that FunJungle's owner, J.J. McCracken, is considering purchasing. But as usual, trouble isn't far behind.

The ranch's endangered bison have been mysteriously disappearing. Then a massive local grizzly bear named Sasquatch breaks into the house, causing chaos. In the aftermath, Kandace McCracken discovers that her exceptionally expensive sapphire necklace has vanished.

Was it stolen? Or did Sasquatch eat it? (And if so, can it be recovered?) And what's been happening to the bison?

With over a dozen suspects, it's up to Teddy to detangle this hairy situation, before his family or friends--or any more expensive objects--become dinner.

Bruce series by Ryan T. Higgins

Bruce the bear likes to keep to himself. That, and eat eggs. But when his hard-boiled goose eggs turn out to be real, live goslings, he starts to lose his appetite. And even worse, the goslings are convinced he's their mother. Bruce tries to get the geese to go south, but he can't seem to rid himself of his new companions. What's a bear to do?

Seekers series by Erin Hunter

The first book in a thrilling animal fantasy series following the epic journey of three bears. When three young bears from different species—black, polar, and grizzly—are separated from their families, fate brings them together on a path that will change their lives forever. Along the way, they will face great danger, terrible tragedies, new landscapes, and situations that require all their ingenuity to survive.

Eat Like a Bear by April Pulley Sayre

Can you eat like a bear?

A sleepy bear awakes in spring and goes to find food. But what is there to eat in April? In May? Follow along and eat like a bear throughout the year: fish from a stream, ants from a tree, and delicious huckleberries from a bush. Fill up your belly and prepare for the long winter ahead, when you'll snuggle into your warm den and snore like a bear once again.

Happy Friday and happy reading!