Oren LavieReseñas

While this is a picture book, the plot is too sophisticated for many children and adults. The illustrations are delightful, and, as other reviewers have noted, quirky. The plot, however, is highly philosophical and imaginative, which may trip up some readers. While I was disappointed that it was too deep for my small child, I recognize the depth of thought in the plot and would encourage older children and adults to give it a try.

Unusual story, kind of like a bear through the looking glass.

Slightly taller than the average picture book, with text slightly larger as well, perhaps it's the international nature of this book (with an author from Israel and an illustrator from Germany, translated into English) that accounts for these small differences that draw me from my expectations. We begin with a bear sho seems to imagine himself into existence. He learns, from a piece of paper he finds in his pocket, clues to his identity. As he goes off to discover if he is indeed himself, he wanders through the forest and encounters a handful of odd creatures along the way. The story is fun and sweet, if quirky. Many images (of trees and flowers and other plants) repeat throughout as if digitally rubber stamped with different ink colors and in different sizes. Some pages would seem to have many layers stamped one upon the next which add to the feeling of the denseness of the forest. Interesting details like these and the sideways spread of the Compass Tree make this an unusual picture book that will confuse some and delight many.

*Many thanks to Akashic Books and LibraryThing for an advance reading copy.*

My 16 year old son loved this book but I didn't really care for it. It's unusual for a picture book. The illustrations are very interesting and unique and quirky. The story is either very deep (too deep for me!) or nonsensical (or maybe both?). I didn't get the point. My son really didn't get the point either, but he thoroughly enjoyed the book any way.

I loved this book! I think it's creative, thought provoking, and a bit philosophical even. The illustrations are whimsical and entertaining. For a US market it might be a little taboo for the frog to be smoking in a children's book. Not all children will love this book, but smart kids will.

Some of the most gorgeously illustrated children's books have showed up in my mailbox recently. The Bear Who Wasn't There: And the Fabulous Forest might be the best though. And the title isn't lying. The forest seriously is fabulous.

Bear has forgotten himself. He searches for the answer to his identity with a list of clues that include:

1. I am a very nice bear
2. I am a happy bear
3. Very handsome too

Along the way he meets a cast of interesting, some nice and some not so nice, characters. Adventures are had and I'm not kidding when I say I think I enjoyed this story even more than my kiddos.

The Bear Who Wasn't There: And the Fabulous Forest is a fun book to read aloud to preschoolers-early elementary. It has the kind of humor that will entertain children and parents alike. I wouldn't mind exploring this wacky forest again and again with the bear who wasn't there.

This is a whimsical story about an itch that turns into an unusual bear. The bear's adventures lead him to discover he is very nice, happy and very handsome. This large format book has enchanting pictures and a slightly odd story that will appeal to imaginative children.

It started with an itch. That grows into a bear. A plump charcoal bear with googly eyes and a bright red swash smile. He becomes aware he isn't there and needs to find himself. According to the note in his pocket, the bear is 1) nice and 2) happy and 3) handsome. He sets off through a Fabulous Forest of trees rendered delicately in engraved-looking stamps that propagate from the endpapers. The trees lead us into the story forest, expanding in variety, complexity and layering, as the bear rambles through the pages pondering philosophical thoughts that lead to preposterous conclusions reminiscent of the wordplay of Lewis Carroll. Actually, this story does resemble a journey through Wonderland with its capricious tone, impromptu logic and absurd characters– such as the Convenience Cow and the Lazy Lizard, followed by the Penultimate Penguin, each helping The Bear Who Wasn't There confirm that he is: 1) a very nice Bear and 2) a happy Bear too– dancing with glee among the delicate print flowers. Finally, he arrives at the Compass Tree and must choose from eight directions instead of four: North, South, East, West, Right, Wrong, Breakfast, and Lunch. Luckily, he meets the Turtle Taxi and is encouraged to just go Forward. Astride the steadfast Turtle, Bear rambles through the woods as the trees grow denser and darker, transforming from the golden page with green-brown foliage at the beginning, to a dark green-gray density with dabs of gold and bright red, seen in the Turtle Taxi's wheel and Bear's enduring red smile. When Bear arrives at a house with a bright red door and built around a big scratching tree, it looks a bit familiar. Sure enough, when he looks in the mirror inside, he recognizes 3) the handsome Bear he's been looking for.
The illustrations by Wolf Erlbruch exude a child's spirit and curiosity brought to life in a plump, lumpy, charcoal Bear with little scritch-scratches of wear, laid boldly over the more formal engraved-looking trees and resulting in remarkably sophisticated compositions. Oren Lavie tells a story brimming with the impromptu events and implausible logic that speaks directly to a kid's imagination. His fable is ultimately a look at how kids define themselves. A small concern may be the emphasis on asking others what they think in the sense of giving them undue influence over defining who Bear is, but at the same time it pans out accurate, since all kids first see themselves through the eyes of others, starting with their parents and caregivers. No worries here though, because Bear ultimately decides for himself, confident in his own best opinion.

Brilliant work with a masterful balance of musical wordplay and beautiful, detailed golden pictures! The book is perfectly written for a child's imaginative understanding and the poetic prose will delight adults also. You see, the main character is a very positive bear who is happy and nice. Oh, and he's handsome, too! He seems to have forgotten himself and sets out on a journey moving forward to finding himself with the help of Turtle Taxi. The story moves along quite nicely as the author introduces bear to some fabulous forest friends; Convenience Cow, Lazy Lizard, and Penultimate Penguin. Ah... the path of self-discovery is a beautiful thing! You'll feel so at home with this one. Get it and guaranteed, you just might read it every night at bedtime. It's that great. Bravo!

Often books written, illustrated, and published in Europe are a bit different from those of American origins. That can be refreshing. It is interesting as an adult to see various styles from America, Europe, England, Australia, and even Asian counties. It is also good to expose children to different styles and types of publications.

Oren Lavie's The Bear Who Wasn't There and the Fabulous Forest is one of those not-so-typical books. It will require a different type of parent or adult to purchase this publication for a child. Those who step out of the box of the ordinary and branch out to the quirky, non-realistic, thought provoking book that is filled with bold and unusual art will acquire it or read it to a child and will be the ones who open the seed pod of insightful thought for the child.

Will the young child grasp the "outside myself" tone of The Bear Who Wasn't There? Probably not. But it will surely tickle their imagination and mom and dad will surely gain a deep chuckle at some of bear's thoughts and quirky answers.

Bear wasn't "there" but an itch was there so the itch scratched itself upon a tree. The more it scratched the larger the itch became until it was bear. Now, I really don't think that this is delving into "creation" and an "out of nothing" theory. It is simply a nonsensical intro into getting bear into the story and into the forest that was, at that point, a single tree.

The story progresses as bear wanders deeper into the growing forest. He meets several other critters in the forest and these meetings give a sense of "Alice in Wonderland" deja vous.

The story teaches that you are you, yourself. It teaches you to be happy. It teaches you to accept yourself as "handsome," lovely.

The illustrations are very focused on the forest and its growing density. There is a good variety of foilage and though the book is primarily in deep greens, black, tans, and browns there are small spots of color that brighten the pages. I love the different look of this art and appreciate that each artist has his or her own style or styles and they utilize their specific talents to bring life to the text the author has composed for a story. This is a good combination of story and art.

DISCLOSURE: I received an ARC Early Reviewer's copy from Librarything.com in a contest. I freely give this review of my own opinions without compensation.

What a fantastic read! It all starts with a medium size Itch that scratches itself against a tree, and the more it scratches the more it grows, and it is covered with fur until it looks like a bear. A bear who wasn't there, but now it is. The bear was all alone and wondered if he was the first or the last one, he wanted to know if he was he. And so starts the Bear's journey to discover if he is he, Some other characters will join the adventure, like Convenience Cow and Lazy Lizard, and of course Penultimate Penguin and Taxi Turtle.

The story is deep and philosophical in a disguised way. Bear looks to answer questions like who we are, how we recognize ourselves, and how happy we are with who we truly are. The dialogues, as funny as absurd reminded me of my beloved Alice in Wonderland. Erlbruch is a talented artist, and this is so far my favorite work by him. When I knew this ARC was coming my way, for some reason I thought it was an e-copy, hence my surprise when I received this beautiful high quality hard copy, full of amazing illustrations. 5 stars.

I received this book from the publisher via LibraryThing in exchange of an honest review.

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A whimsical story of an Itch that develops into a bear. As he rambles through the fabulous forest on an adventure of self-discovery, the reader gets a beautifully unique view of the world around him. The bear finally discovers that he is himself, but then he had a feeling he was. He felt familiar.
My children (6 & 8) and I enjoyed this book very much. We chuckled and smiled with surprise and delight. The illustrations support the text nicely, helping us envision the very nice, happy bear who is very handsome, too.
(It does include an animal character who is smoking a cigar.)
Highly recommended.
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Bear Who Wasn't There is as quirky and cheerful as Bear himself. This book would be at home on the shelf next to Alice in Wonderland, and is sure to delight many readers. I found the illustrations by Erlbruch to be the perfect whimsical complement to Lavie's words. This book just might make readers stop and smell a Beautiful number of flowers after reading.

This book is clever and fun to read, but can certainly be described as odd. There is quite a bit of text on each page, so this is not your traditional picture book, but this oddity makes you want to keep reading.

The Bear Who Wasn't There is quite possibly best described as a German Existential film in the form of a children's story about a bear. It starts with an itch that turns into a bear, which in turn becomes a quest of self identification.

The story plays with a lot of ideas of self and being, and while it can be clever, it also can go over the target audience's head quite easily. Some parents may even be turned off by a page that depicts a lizard smoking a cigar.

In the end, the story was clever, but at the same time, exceptionally weird. I'd recommend it for older readers, not because of any subject matter, but rather some of the mind-bending topics it covers. In the end, it's not for everybody, and possibly just worth getting from the library or flipping through at the bookstore. Then get it if you fall in love with the story. Otherwise, pass it on for something else.

This is a very unusual picture book. The story is that there is an itch and the itch turns into a bear. The bear is a bit confused (is he first? Is he last? Is he nice?). It has very quirky characters (like the comfortable cow and the lazy lizard) and fairly straightforward plot line. He's on his way forward but he doesn't know where that is. I didn't love it. I thought it was very strange and there's a lot of text on each page.