Emily Gravett’s sweet board book is such a special one to have in your home. This book contains only five words- orange, pear, apple, bear and there – yet, despite the minimal text, Gravett manages to create a wholly endearing read about a humorous bear by brilliantly rearranging the words and the punctuation.
Gravett’s combinations result in whimsical watercolor illustrations depicting the bear juggling, balancing and, eventually, eating all of the fruit. By manipulating both the placement of the words and the punctuation used, Gravett deftly demonstrates how the meaning of a word can be significantly altered based upon the context in which it is used. Even better, though the illustrations are simple and the text sparse, the book nonetheless manages to introduce children to the concepts of color, shape, rhyme and even language and writing.
We love this book in our house. Bo, at only 18 months, turns the pages and repeatedly says the words “orange bear,” then looks at me with a grin. Pickle, at 3, loves to analyze the pictures and figure out which word combo is illustrated. We never go wrong when we pull this off the shelf (although, let’s be honest, it’s usually on the floor because Bo drags it all over the house!) and I just adore the way it helps my boys unlock their imagination. Perfect- a must have for your kids’ bookshelves!
Want the book? Get it here! Orange Pear Apple Bear, by Emily Gravett. *This is an affiliate link.
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