| ||||||||||||||||||
 Trade In this Item for up to £1.20
Trade in A Boy and a Bear in a Boat for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £1.20, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Plus, get an extra £5 when you trade in books worth £10 or more until June 30, 2012. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Find more products eligible for trade-in.
|
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
To an adult reader, the title 'A Boy and a bear in a Boat' instantly brings to mind Yann Martel's 'Life of Pi', with its boy in a boat with a tiger, and Moacyr Scliar's 'Max and the Cats', with a Jewish refugee in a boat with a jaguar. (What is it with a single male cast adrift with a wild animal?) One of the big differences in Dave Shelton's illustrated children's novel is that it's the animal that does the rowing. The lovingly designed jacket and hardback cover, with its slightly mottled paper and 'worn' spine, evokes memories of Mervyn Peake's 'Letters from a Lost Uncle' or Reif Larsen's more recent 'The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet. But despite the fact that Shelton is currently best known as a comic book illustrator, 'A Boy and a Bear in a Boat' is less highly illustrated than either of these. We are, however, embarking on a journey with literary precedence. This is a voyage requiring two maps, both of which are made up of grids of clear blue sea (except for a rock and a coffee ring). The "complimentary onboard entertainment" is I-Spy, limited to what's outside the boat (which is usually "something beginning with S". As for food, that's soon reduced to The Last Sandwich (which is slightly glowing, but comes in very handy). When the boy goes so far as to suggest they are lost in the middle of nowhere, the captain - the bear in his captain's hat - becomes very indignant. "You see, we're here.. And the middle of nowhere is here ... We passed through it at noon yesterday." This is a bear who doesn't like to make plans. ("No point having a plan when you're a sea captain ... You have to deal with each situation as it arises.")These situations include a sea monster, thick mist and a Mary Celeste-type ship. The bear seems to surprise even himself when he suddenly has a bright idea. He may drink tea from a cup with a saucer, but he's a real bear who can use claws like a pair of pliers, who licks his wounds and growls. He can smell danger - or is it marmalade? - and he can certainly stare. They do a lot of staring at each other, the boy and the bear in a boat. But what of the boy? He's a boy. He has the occasional bright idea, too. He gets irritable when hungry and wants to name the rock after himself "unless it's horrible ... Then we can name it after you." It is, however, the bear's ever-practical approach - if sometimes impractical in execution - that usually keeps their spirits, if not their vessel, afloat. "The sea's over there if you'd prefer it," he says on one occasion. "It's roomier, but it's not so dry." IN the end, though, their roles change and the boy must take the metaphorical helm. I suspect some readers of this review may be wondering where, exactly, the bear and boy in a boat are heading, and whether they get there. Well, keep wondering. I ain't going to tell you. As for any niggles? Just one. The illustrations of the bear. Nothing can bear the image of the bear Shelton paints with his words. That's the picture I shall take away with me from this very special book. --The Guardian, Philip Ardagh review, 28.01.12
`reminds you of The Life of Pi, with better jokes ... a superbly visual tome'.
--The Observer
`reminds you of The Life of Pi, with better jokes ... a superbly visual tome'.
--The Observer
Book Description
Charming, entertaining and utterly original: this book will leave every reader with a huge grin across their face.
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Everything about this book is a joy. The cover is a work of genius, the illustrations are perfect, and the story is wonderful. I love ebooks, but volumes like this are a genuine pleasure to hold in your hand. As for the story - the titular boy sets off in the boat with its captain, a bear. What should have been a short journey (whither and whence, we are never told) turns into both adventure and misadventure, with shipwrecks and seamonsters, dodgy sandwiches and endless games of I Spy. Highly recommended.
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
You are initially intrigued as to how the bear and boy end up on Harriet, the small boat that becomes their floating world for most of this book. But after a while you care less about this and just float along with these two on their wee adventure across the sea. This was a good dad-daughter bedtime read but the constant reminder of who said what "said the boy" "said the bear" was unnecessary, drove me nuts, and left little for the imagination as to who said what. In most cases it was absolutely obvious (to me and my 8 year old daughter), as to who said what. But we enjoyed the story and I recommend it if only to enjoy the mood swings of the bear and the interesting relationship he had with the boy.
"Now to the cover", said the reviewer. If this was a case of "It's too LifeofPi'ish to show a picture of a grumpy looking bear and cute boy on a boat. We will instead have a map of the sea with a bottom of a mug coffee stain on there, accompanying a fly and a tiny tiny boat" Big mistake. I guess many copies of this book were picked up by parents and kids in book shops and then placed back on the shelf or seen on line and passed over. A shame, so I suggest you change it for a picture of a grumpy looking bear and cute boy on a boat. This is, after all, what this book is about.
"Now to the cover", said the reviewer. If this was a case of "It's too LifeofPi'ish to show a picture of a grumpy looking bear and cute boy on a boat. We will instead have a map of the sea with a bottom of a mug coffee stain on there, accompanying a fly and a tiny tiny boat" Big mistake. I guess many copies of this book were picked up by parents and kids in book shops and then placed back on the shelf or seen on line and passed over. A shame, so I suggest you change it for a picture of a grumpy looking bear and cute boy on a boat. This is, after all, what this book is about.
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I bought this book for my 5 year old son as he is called Bear and is also a boy..... I am only 2 chapters in and am totally hooked, in fact i'm back on Amazon to see if Dave Shelton had any other gems up his sleeve. The cover and the name are what drew me to it, but although clever and very pleasing you can't as they say judge a book by it. The writting is melodic and beautiful, i almost sent my self to sleep with the description of the rocking boat and the lapping waves, my son with hands behind his head and a blissfull expression listening intently. Obviously we couldn't stop at one chapter, but after two I can't wait for tomorrow night..... More when we've actually finished it, but very very happy and impressed with the start.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
A delight
I have just purchased this book for my soon to be 8 year old nephew. I bought it originally to read to my two year old son. Read more
Published 1 month ago by V.C.L.
A Boy And A Bear In A Boat In A Book
Having just finished reading this book I felt compelled to find out what other people made of it while hoping that they all enjoyed the adventure as much as I did. Read more
Published 2 months ago by R. Woodcock
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Children's Books > Classics
- Books > Children's Books > Fiction > Animals
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
