A Bear In Winter: Bear Feels Sick and Bear Stays Up for Christmas by Karma Wilson

The late fall weather is tops, and Bear should be on top of the world, but instead he's feeling totally under the weather. A cold has come to stay, and Bear feels stuffy and achy.

Alone in his cave,
As the autumn wind blows,
Bear feels achy,
With a stuffed up nose.

Bear's friends-raven, hare, gopher, mole, and all the usual suspects--gather round and he's no longer alone, BUT HE STILL FEELS SICK. His pals wrap him in a quilt, make him warm soup and drinks, stir up the fire, and even paint him pictures, until Bear is soothed and warm.

They all talk in whispers.
They walk on tippy toes,
They sing lullabies,
Then the bear starts to doze.

When he wakes, Bear is all better, ready to party all day, but to his dismay, his friends seem to have all started to sneeze and wheeze. Lucky for them, Bear knows just what to do:

He tells all his friends,
'You'll soon feel like new.
You took care of me.
Now I'll take care of YOU.

With this just published book, author Karma Wilson and illustrator Jane Chapman continue their greatest hits in the Bear and friends series, beginning with Bear Snores On. Their warm and humorous pictures and cheery verse make the book practically beg to be read aloud over and over, especially as sneezy, breezy wintertime comes on!

Now that Christmastide is almost upon us, it's also time for Karma Wilson's salute to the season, Bear Stays Up for Christmas.

The day before Christmas,
Snuggled on his floor,
Bear sleeps soundly
With a great big snore.

"Dear Bear, GET UP!"
Mouse shouts in his ear.
"We won't let you sleep
Through Christmas this year."

So Bear wakes to his first Christmas Eve. He dutifully slogs along with his friends to choose a tree and carries it on his broad back through the snow to his lair, where they pop corn and string it to transform the tree, bake plenty of fruitcake, and hang their stockings. Mouse, Hare, and the rest gradually begin to doze, but by now Bear is too excited to sleep. Busy baking cookies and wrapping gifts as his friends sleep, Bear is oblivious even to a visit from St. Nick at the door to his cave.

As the friends awake and they welcome Christmas Day together, Mouse discovers Santa's bounty outside, and Bear and friends pass around the presents. Best of all, Bear's gift is a warm blue quilt, under which he is at last allowed to fall asleep.

Happy Christmas to all, and to Bear, a good night!