For brave hunters and bear-lovers, this is the classic chant-aloud by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury in a beautiful 25th-anniversary edition. We're going on a bear hunt. We're going to catch a big one. Will you come too? For a quarter of a century, readers have been swishy-swashying and splash-sploshing through this award-winning favourite. Follow and join in the family's excitement as they wade through the grass, splash through the river and squelch through the mud in search of a bear. What a surprise awaits them in the cave on the other side of the dark forest! It was the winner of the 1989 Smarties Book Prize and highly commended for the Kate Greenaway Medal. This anniversary edition is a jacketed paperback - embellished with gold foil, gold bear logos and a special gold sticker.
The author: Michael Rosen
Michael Rosen is one of the most popular authors of stories and poems for children. His bestselling titles, published by Walker Books, include Little Rabbit Foo Foo, Michael Rosen's Sad Book, This Is Our House, Tiny Little Fly, Dear Mother Goose and its sequel Dear Fairy Godmother. Michael received the Eleanor Farjeon Award in 1997, and was the Children's Laureate from 2007 to 2009. He is a distinguished critic and academic, co-directing an MA in Children's Literature at Birkbeck College. Michael lives in London with his family.
The illustrator: Helen Oxenbury Helen Oxenbury is among the most popular and critically acclaimed illustrators of her time. Her numerous books for children include Smarties Book Prize-winning Farmer Duck by Martin Waddell; We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen; as well as her classic board books for babies. She won the Kate Greenaway Medal for Alice in Wonderland. Her most recent picture book was the critically acclaimed There's Going to Be a Baby, the first book-publishing collaboration between her and her husband John Bumingham. Helen lives in London, NW3. Do you want to see the author explaining the book??
The animated version
Good Morning Britain. Michael Rosen author of 'We're Going On A Bear Hunt' discusses the importance of getting children reading and how to do it.
The Adventures of Punxsutawney Phil, Wiarton Willie, and Pothole Pete
by Holly Hartman
February 2 brings the most-watched weather forecast of the year—and the only one led by a rodent. Legend has it that on this morning, if a groundhog can see its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter. If it cannot see its shadow, spring is on the way.
Why the Groundhog?
Since a groundhog (or woodchuck or "whistle pig") hibernates for the winter, its coming out of the ground is a natural sign of spring. In Europe centuries ago, people watched for other hibernating animals, including badgers, bears, and hedgehogs, as signs of winter's end. Germans who immigrated to Pennsylvania in the mid-1800s began keeping an eye on the groundhog. The widespread population of the rodent made it a handy agent for this particular weather superstition. And a superstition it is. But there's a grain of truth: the winter days when you can see your shadow clearly are often especially cold, because there are no clouds overhead to insulate the earth.
Why now?
Early February is midway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. Throughout history numerous holidays have marked this seasonal crossroads. Among these is Candlemas Day, February 2, a Christian holiday that celebrates Mary's ritual purification. Early Christians believed that if the sun came out on Candlemas Day, winter would last for six weeks more. The ancient Romans observed a mid-season festival on February 5, and the pagan Irish celebrated one around February 1. In many parts of Europe early February might herald the start of spring, when crops could be planted.
Punxsutawney Phil and Friends
In the 1880s some friends in Punxsutawney, Penn., went into the woods on Candlemas Day to look for groundhogs. This outing became a tradition, and a local newspaper editor nicknamed the seekers "the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club." Starting in 1887 the search became an official event centered on a groundhog called Punxsutawney Phil. A ceremony still takes place every year. Today Punxsutawney Phil lives in a climate-controlled habitat adjoining the Punxsutawney Library. A local celebrity, he gained national fame in the 1993 movie Groundhog Day (which was shot in scenic Woodstock, Illinois). The weather-watching rodent's predictions are recorded in the Congressional Records of our National Archive. So far, Phil has seen his shadow about 85% of the time. Canada's Groundhog Day relies on the predictions of an albino groundhog named Wiarton Willie. Although Punxsutawney Phil gets the most attention, various American cities have their own special groundhogs; New York City's official groundhog is called "Pothole Pete."
