Can Bears Ski?

Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021 (1/29/21) is in its 8th year! This non-profit children’s literacy initiative was founded by Valarie Budayr and Mia Wenjen, two diverse book-loving moms who saw a need to shine the spotlight on all of the multicultural books and authors on the market while also working to get those books into the hands of young readers and educators.

Eight years in, MCBD’s mission to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in homes and school bookshelves continues. Read about our Mission & History HERE.

To Candlewick Press for gifting me with a copy of this book for the review. Thank you Raquel Stecher and Rachel Johnstone!

"Can Bears Ski? by Raymond Antrobus is an endearing children's picture book that speaks to the hearts of those faced with hard of hearing issues. The book explores diversity with a creative approach for ages 4-7. It's also a helpful book using age appropriate terminology, e.g. audiologist and audiogram. Young readers will enjoy figuring out what the title “Can Bears Ski?” is supposed to mean. They will also benefit from learning more about the issues of someone hard of hearing and how to talk to them. It's the perfect book for teachers, parents and classmates. Sign language is not a part of the story line. The story follows Little Bear who is just discovering his deafness. It is Antrobus's children's debut book.

Born deaf, author Antrobus wears hearing aids and often explores his own experiences with deafness in his writing and spoken word. “Can Bears Ski?” was inspired by the author's poem Happy Birthday Moon in his poetry collection “Perseverance." One of Antrobus's favorite childhood books was listening to the book “Happy Birthday Moon” by Frank Asch.

The story line develops the relationship of the two main characters Dad Bear and Little Bear. As they discover Little Bear's deafness a variety of emotions surface. The question “Can bears ski?” really equates to “Can you hear me?” showing the experience of deafness how noises get all muddled and messages often misunderstood. It models a father who connects with his child by reading him books. Often their communication is not always clear. Sometimes Father Bear is frustrated and can lose his temper. Yet the story speaks to love and patience, a central theme to the story line. Little Bear despite his hearing difficulties is a strong, lively and resilient character. He likes to wear bold primary colors, is energetic, proud and happy. I liked the addition of adding realistic details such as Little Bear losing his hearing aids often and his father's impatience helping to look for them. I did note there are no deaf stereotypes in this story and Little Bear is not portrayed as a victim of deafness. Some unexpected characters added a new dimension to the story with a male primary teacher and a female audiologist.

Polly Dunbar, illustrator, is partially deaf and grew up in a home with a mother who is deaf. What a collaborative pair Dunbar and Antrobus make bringing their own personal experiences with deafness to the story. Readers with hearing loss will find it relatable to their own lives. Dunbar's illustrations make the story shine with her attention to detail and how she effectively captures the characters' emotions. Her depiction of Little Bear's home, school setting and an audiologist's room add realism to the story line. Sound and silence are captured beautifully in the illustrations complimenting the text. Vibrations in Little Bear's bedroom with movement and going down the stairs indicate sound. Bold use of color with some busyness on pages indicate how noises seem confusing to Little Bear. Silence is suggested with snowfall and the hush of a quiet room in the library. The device of using number repetition several times illustrates how those with a hearing loss need something repeated more than once. My favorite page is when Little Bear with his newly acquired hearing aids discovers his new world is loud and he needs to get used to it.

The author and illustrator bring first hand knowledge to the story. What a wonderful book for helping kids better understand sensitive issues for those experiencing hearing loss whether it be in their family, neighborhood or school. This book fits a niche in the market for needed books on diversity for young readers experiencing hearing loss.

Helpful links for parents and educators working with children faced with hearing loss.

https://www.readingrockets.org/article/reading-together-tips-parents-children-hearing-loss-or-deafness

https://successforkidswithhearingloss.com/

Raymond Antrobus is an award-winning British poet, educator and writer. He is a a deaf spoken-word poet who has been performing poetry since 2007. In March 2019 he won the Ted Hughes Award for new work in poetry and he's the first poet to the awarded the Rathbones Folio Prize. His notable work "Perseverance" is a book of loss, contested language and praise, where elegies for the poet's father sit alongside meditations on the deaf experience.
www.raymondantrobus.com

Polly Dunbar is a partially deaf author and illustrator of many books for young children, including Penguin, Hello Tilly, Pretty Pru, Goodnight Tiptoe and A Lion is a Lion. She is also the illustrator of Pat-a-cake Baby and Here's a Little Poem, among other titles. Dunbar lives in England.
http://www.pollydunbar.com/ 

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Sue Ready-Book Reviewer 

She is a freelance writer, book reviewer (EverReady Book Reviews), former middle school and elementary teacher. Sue is the president of Northwoods Arts Council in Hackensack, MN and chair for the book arts Northwoods Art and Book Festival. She writes a twice monthly food column for a local newspaper and blogs at sockfairies.blogspot.com