Bulletin for the Center... - 01/01/2008 “No visitors allowed,” says the sign on Bear’s door, though it’s apparently a superfluous warning, since he never has visitors anyway—not until the mouse, “small and gray and bright-eyed,” turns up at his house. No matter how Bear tries to exclude the mouse, the wee rodent gets in, leading to Bear’s thundering denunciations and the mouse’s apologetic excuses. When the persistent mouse finally convinces Bear to share tea, however, the bruin discovers that company is a pleasant thing to have. The well-built story supports its gentle whimsy effectively, and the comic grandiosity of Bear’s fulminations (“This is impossible! Intolerable! Insufferable!”) provides a humorous counterpart to the mouse’s polite yet stealthy persistence. Denton, deftly imbuing her watercolor illustrations with expression and character as well as tidy charm, makes her scenes softly inviting with pastel tones and warm brown edging lines as well as old-fashioned interior detail that makes Bear’s house seem a place anyone might wish to infiltrate. The two adversaries are notable visual personalities, Bear gifted with a balletic lightness of foot and tendency toward dramatic poses, the mouse with a studied nonchalance in his sideways glances. With its vitality, friendliness, and individuality, this is a standout in the “unlikely friends” genre. DS - Copyright 2008 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

School Library Journal - 02/01/2008 PreS-Gr 2-When a friendly mouse knocks at his door, Bear sternly points to the "No Visitors Allowed" sign. Returning to his breakfast preparations, he opens the cupboard only to find the mouse tucked inside a bowl. "Perhaps we could have just a spot of tea," the ever-hopeful guest suggests, but he is again shown the door. Despite boarding the windows shut, stopping up the chimney, and plugging the bathtub drain, the persistent rodent keeps reappearing. Finally Bear admits defeat, "I am undone," and agrees to set out a snack. Much to his surprise, Bear enjoys the company and shares jokes and demonstrates a talent at headstands. The visit prompts him to reconsider his sign: "That's for salesmen. Not for friends." Denton's softly hued watercolor illustrations capture the humorous interplay between the unlikely companions. The fastidious, pot-bellied bear wears a tiny apron while the wee mouse with a big personality peeks out of such unlikely places as an egg carton. The lively repetition and superb pacing make this an ideal choice for storytime.-Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information. - Copyright 2008 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 02/15/2008 Bear seems happy in this solitude and even has a sign posted on his house, “No visitors allowed.” A mouse who taps on Bear’s door is told to go away. But Mouse won’t, and keeps reappearing until Bear finally dissolves into tears and gives in. Soon Bear realizes it’s pleasant having someone else around, and when Mouse is ready to leave, Bear doesn’t want him to go; he even removes the sign, declaring that it was for really just for salesmen, “not for friends.” Watercolor, ink and gouache illustrations in a soft color palette show a comfortable, expansive house that seems to emphasize Bear’s need for a friend to fill it up. The characters are highly expressive, making the pictures fun, and the dramatic text will lend itself to reading aloud. Pair this with Laura Vaccaro Seeger’s Dog and Bear (2007). - Copyright 2008 Booklist.