Today we are excited to share a guest post from author Ellen Ramsey,
A Book For Bear!
Read on for more about Ellen and A Book for Bear!
Meet Ellen Ramsey!
Ellen Ramsey’s love of reading and writing led her to careers as a teacher, a technical editor, and an author of stories for children. Her work has appeared in Highlights, Spider, Ladybug, Muse, and Fun for Kidz. One of her poems, published in Highlights High Five, won an SCBWI Magazine Merit Award for Poetry. Like Bear in her picture book A BOOK FOR BEAR, she loves visiting schools, libraries, and bookstores, but unlike Bear, she typically does not need a disguise. She and her husband live in a house filled with thousands of books, many teddy bears, and lots of laughter! You can visit Ellen L. Ramsey online at EllenLRamsey.com or follow her on Instagram @EllenLRamseyBooks and on Twitter @EllenLRamsey1.
About the Book: A Book for Bear
Bear loves books. When Bear decides he wants a book of his very own, he and his best friend Ellen hatch a plan. But sneaking a bear into a school, a library, and a bookstore proves to be harder than they thought. Will Bear ever find a book of his very own? With charming and timeless words from debut author Ellen Ramsey and brought to life by MacKenzie Haley, this is an endearing story of a determined young bear and his journey to find the perfect book.
~ Guest Post ~
Reading Stories: A Springboard to Writing Stories
People love stories. Listening to them, reading them, and telling them.
A colleague of mine has a sign in his office that says: “Humans: The Storytelling Animal.”
The love of stories starts early. Among our daughter’s first words (coming relatively soon after “ma-ma” and “da-da”) were “Read me!” She accompanied this request by plopping a favorite book in my lap. Living in an apartment filled with books, she found that “read me,” especially when coupled with “please” and a pleading look, would typically get a story—and sometimes two.
Say the words “Once upon a time” or “Let me tell you a story,” and an audience will gather—in the living room, at the dining room table, or around a campfire.
In A BOOK FOR BEAR, Bear learns to love stories by listening to his friend Ellen read scary books, exciting books, funny books.
Soon Bear embarks on a search for a book of his very own. Assisted by Ellen, Bear devises imaginative disguises to wear as he sneaks into places with lots of books—schools, libraries, and bookstores. When perceptive librarians and others see the bear behind the disguises, Bear and Ellen must find another way for Bear to have a book of his very own.
Reading stories like A BOOK FOR BEAR and other books about books encourages kids to learn to read and inspires them to create their own stories.
Kids can tell a story with words, drawings, or both. A few pieces of folded paper glued together or stapled or sewn by an older kid or helpful adult is a good start. Provided with colored pencils, markers, crayons, or paints, kids will be well on their way to creating books of their very own. Kids can keep bookmaking supplies—and their completed books—in a special “Book Box.”
Reading books is a springboard for talking about ideas for stories. Bear wants a book the color of ripe red raspberries and delicious to read. Kids could imagine the types of books other animals might want—a dog? a cat? a parrot? a hippo? a dragon? Bear needs disguises to help him sneak into places with books. Kids could challenge themselves to think of what disguises their favorite animals might wear for going on adventures. These are ways to inspire new story ideas.
Reading books is not only a way to grow readers and storytellers, but also a way to grow friendships. Bear and Ellen become friends because of their shared love of books. The popularity of book clubs shows how much people love to share ideas and opinions about what they are reading.
Creating a space with books and bookmaking supplies will grow readers, writers, and friendships. My “read me” daughter has become an English professor who reads and writes as an integral part of her career and has many friends who share her passion for reading and writing. When your kids say, “read me,” be sure you have a good supply of books—scary books, exciting books, and funny books.
Title: A BOOK FOR BEAR
Author: Ellen Ramsey
Illustrator: MacKenzie Haley
Release Date: 07/18/2023
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers
ISBN-10: 0593527240
ISBN-13: 9780593527245
Genre: Picture Book
Age Range: 4-8 years
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Awh, this looks like a sweet one.
This looks like just the sweetest book!! Such a delightfully illustrated cover!
This book looks so great, I think my twins would love it! Congrats!
This looks adorable! I’d love to share it with readers at my school.
This definitely looks like it could become a child’s favorite book!
So sweet
The cover is adorable and this book is set in my favorite place–the library!