The Three Bears (Paul Galdone Nursery Classic)

This is both a thoughtfully written and illustrated version of The 3 Bears suitable for children as young age 2. We have read several renditions and I highly recommend this one because:

1. The illustrations actually match the story. Many versions talk about the big, medium, and little bowls, chairs, & beds, but never show them side by side. This clearly shows the differences in size. There are also pictures to accompany all of the key points in the book, while most versions do not depict essential parts of the story.

2. The text is engaging, but simple enough for younger children. The font size even changes to match the bears' size (ie, when talking about the wee little bear, the text is a smaller size).

Some people have complained about the "PC" nature if this story. Honestly we have read it countless times, and the thought that Galdone had intentionally referred to the bears as the wee little bear,the middle-sized bear, and the great big bear rather than the baby bear, mama bear, and papa bear all in an effort to undermined the traditional family unit never crossed my mind. Galdone was born in Hungry in 1907, wrote and/or illustrated over 300 books, and published this book at age 65. The idea that he was using his pulpit as a children's author to make a political statement seems far-fetched and bizarre.

I like nicely illustrated bear books, so was anxious to get a copy of this one based on its nicely detailed cover. It's a fairly straightforward retelling of the tale of the porridge, chairs, and beds. I did not even notice the lack of "Papa" and "Mama" language until someone else pointed it out, probably because I've heard the tale told as "Papa" and "Mama" interchangeably with "Big bear" and "Middle-sized bear" my whole life. In any event it's pretty clear from the illustrtions that this is a bear family and the two bigger bears look after the little one - make of that what you will.

The illustrations have enough detail to make them interesting to look at, although I was hoping for a little more especially in the backgrounds. I enjoyed that the small bear plays with a teddy (how appropriate). Goldilocks looks very traditional with hair ribbon, gold locks and a fancy dress. It's interesting how the bears, who are benign-looking through most of the book, take on a scary and angry appearance when they find their house has been intruded upon, so it's quite easy to see why Goldilocks is scared.

This is your typical story about Goldilocks and the three bears. I gave it 4 stars because I personally don't like the use of the bear names "Great Big Bear, Middle-Sized Bear, and Little-Wee Bear." It's alright, just not what I was expecting to use. I'm a music teacher, and I was hoping that this was the momma and poppa kind, so that I could discuss pitches of the voice. The names in this book represented size of the bears, which is something I didn't want to confuse with voice pitches. You could have a small person, but they could have a deep voice, etc. It's OK, but it didn't specifically deliver for my purpose.

Great product.

As with every Paul Galdone interpretation of fairy tales, this one was excellent. He does not drift from the original theme of the tale as many have done, but offers an appealing version sure to provide an entertaining book for storytellers and little readers alike.

As with every Paul Galdone interpretation of fairy tales, this one was excellent. He does not drift from the original theme of the tale as many have done, but offers an appealing version sure to provide an entertaining book for storytellers and little readers alike.

Great

This old standard is new again. Illustrations are great. My granddaughter really likes this book. Bought all in this seriese.