Product Description

n Humphrey's dream, his teddy bear comes to life and joins him on adventures by the sea. Featuring gorgeous illustrations by William Joyce, this loving story of Humphrey and his bear was inspired by the author's memories of an old Steiff bear that belonged to his father.Unavailable in hardcover since 1977, this edition features a newly designed jacket by William Joyce, new endpapers, and an updated reset interior text. Humphrey's Bear is now available in both paperback and hardcover-perfect for introducing this bedtime classic to a new generation of readers.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1466883 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-01
• Released on: 2005-04-14
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 32 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Humphrey sleeps with the toy bear his father used to have. As the boy drifts off, the bear grows huge, and bossy ("Here is your cap," he says. "Get moving"). The boat to the dream sea leaves from the backyard, and they sail away. Humphrey loses the bear in a typhoon but finds him washed ashore on an island, where the bear has become gentlehe plays the banjo and serves hot chocolate. Humphrey's father wakes him gently to say that he, too, used to follow the bear. The abrupt ending and the parental hovering at the end seem jarring and and inconclusive. The dream sequence, illustrated in dark seagoing vistas, and the island landscapes are effective. For characterization, this isn't as consistent and beguiling as other favorite storytime bears, but Humphrey's is better than the average. Ages 58.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 3 Author and illustrator credit the influence of animated films of 30 years ago and more on their work, and it's easy to imagine a bouncy cartoon soundtrack accompanying this simple adventure tale. Father grumbles, ``Isn't Humphrey too old to sleep with a toy bear?'' He's forgotten his own childhood joy in dreamtime sailing with that very same bear. The dreaming child sets off with his toy. They are caught by a typhoon and wash up on an island. The blue coloring, the details of palm trees, ocean, and the island setting unmistakably recall Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are. Humphrey's story, like that classic, begins with parental disapproval, only to end in reconciliation. Humphrey is too passive to interest children the way feisty Max does; nor is Humphrey's bear, grown overnight many times larger than the boy, entirely sympathetic. There is something unsettling that the last page fade-out of dad, bear, and boy cuddling together can't put to rest. The jacket art shows the two adventurers as a parent would see them looking down. Boy and bear are nestled in bed, cozy and vulnerable. It's a wonderful illustration. Gentle story or lackluster homage? This team is too good and the book too carefully made to disregard, but probably just as many children will be indifferent to it as are passionately attached. Anna Biagioni Hart, Sher wood Public Library, Alexandria, Va.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"Clutching his favorite brown teddy bear, Humphrey goes off to bed....The bear grows to life-size and invites Humphrey on a sailing adventure....Joyce creates mood with dark, intense colors and simple shapes that focus the eye....The artwork reaches to the very edge of the pages and seemingly beyond, making full use of the picture-book format. The warm and tender relationships between boy and teddy-bear-as-toy and between boy and teddy-bear-as-friend will send youngsters scurrying for their own special comforters. Imbued with a warm, gentle spirit, this book is one to treasure."--Booklist, starred review

"With their sculptural figures and careful design, [Joyce's illustrations] are reminiscent of Van Allsburg's work, with the nice addition of a family depicted with warmth and tenderness."--Kirkus Reviews
-- Review

Customer Reviews

warm warm and warm
william joyce's illustrations make this one of my very favorite books: it is the book i always give as a baby shower gift. ANYONE can give "goodnight moon" but this book is special. the first 5 or 6 times i read it to my son i cried at the last line. i like how the FATHER is the one who comforts the boy (on the last page) and it is the mother who looks on lovingly. simply a wonderful, cozy book, if ever there was one.

A Classic Bedtime Story in the Style of Sendak's, Where the Wild Things Are
Humphrey's Bear is a classic award-winning bedtime tale very much in the style of Mauric Sendak's, Where the Wild Things Are. It is the story of a young boy named Humphrey who, much to his father's dismay, goes to bed with his teddy bear. As he dreams, Humphrey's front yard becomes the setting for a seafaring adventure in which his teddy bear becomes a large and rather bossy shipmate.

Humphrey's Bear has a rich and colorful text which makes it perfect for sharing as a read-aloud story. The text is complimented nicely by dark illustrations which evoke a sense of mystery and adventure.

My four-year-old daughter really enjoys listening to me read this book. She isn't bothered by the fact that the teddy bear becomes a bossy bloke, and it doesn't bother her that Humphrey awakens to find his father holding the bear, as if he was planning to take it away as his son slept. Maybe these are things that only an adult would notice.