Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 06/01/2018 PreS-Gr 1—As bear settles into bed for his long winter hibernation, a "KNOCK KNOCK" at the door causes him to rise and frustratingly ask, "Who's there?" One anthropomorphic woodland creature after another offers up a name and silly exchanges in the form of knock-knock jokes which are represented in alternating speech bubbles. Justin the fox responds, "Justin the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by!" while a group of critters that reply, "Olive" to Bear's concerned, "Who's there?" joyfully shout, "Olive us!" When a wolf, or "Ima," appears at the window, he responds, "Ima gonna huff and puff and blow the house down if you don't open this door." The lively, full-color cartoon illustrations are kid-friendly and fun, and the expressive characters paired with the back-and-forth jokes will make for an amusing read-aloud. The urgency of Bear's friends to enter his cozy winter den is understood in one of the final full-page spreads where a banner reads, "Happy Hibernation," and a party with full decoration, followed by bedtime stories, is set for Bear. VERDICT Saturated colors, animated characters, and silly jokes will ensure repeated readers. Fans of Karma Wilson's "Bear" books will enjoy the added jokes in this picture book. An appealing read-aloud choice on hibernation and friendship.—Brianne Colombo, Fairfield Free Public Library, NJ - Copyright 2018 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.