It's About Time, Jesse Bear and Other Rhymes

Jesse Bear

by Nancy White Carlstrom, Bruce Degen (Illustrator)

From the moment an exuberant Jesse Bear pounces on his sleeping parents' bed to his final goodnight kiss, his day is filled with adventure, fun, and the occasional bit of mischief. Preschoolers and their parents will find much to identify with in Nancy White Carlstrom's joyous, rhythmic poems -- ideal for reading aloud -- and in Bruce Degen's bright, detailed ink-and-watercolor illustrations.

Genres: Picture Books, Poetry, Animals, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Nancy White Carlstrom has written more than 50 books for children, including the Jesse Bear series with illustrator Bruce Degan.

Born the daughter of steel mill worker William J. and Eva (Lawrence) White, Nancy White Carlstrom was born in Washington, Pennsylvania, on August 4, 1948. She practiced writing poetry, enjoyed reading books like Little Women, and wanted to become a children’s book author at an early age. Carlstrom worked in the children’s department of her local library in Washington during her high school years. She graduated from Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, majoring in Elementary Education and earning her B.A. in 1970, also studying at Harvard Extension School and Radcliffe from 1974 to 1976. In September of 1974, she married David R. Carlstrom, later a pilot and a marketing director at Fairbanks International Airport. They had two children—Jesse and Joshua.

She draws inspiration from her 18 years living in Alaska, volunteer experiences in Africa and Haiti, and raising her two sons.

Reviews

[Rod Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thirteen poems about family life and childhood play. I liked the first one, but the number of poems outlasted my interest in them.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of our family's favorite Jesse Bear books. I think I have read it multiple times. It rhymes and is just a sweet book, with a bear and his mom and dad. Reading this out loud is a lot of fun, because I can add the emotion in it, where it is just right.

[Anna Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve got fond childhood memories of Jesse Bear books.

[Natasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

We love all the little poems in this book. :)
- ages 4, 5 & 6

[Samantha Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet poems

[Cathy Sheetz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every few pages are new poems as we go with Jesse Bear through his day.

Unit or lesson on poetry for 3rd through 6th grade. Classroom library for 3rd through 6th grade.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 3 out of 5]

This third Jesse Bear book deviates quite a bit from the first two. This one is a collection of poetry all about Jesse Bear's day. I recognized some of the same creative uses of language that made me enjoy the first two books so much, but I thought this format was kind of a disappointment. I also didn't really think the poems were tied together that well. The title led me to believe this book would be about time, and the cover illustration, where Jesse Bear and his father glance at the clock, contributed to that idea. But at best, each poem represents a time of day - morning, noon, or night - in some tangential way.

Even though this book didn't work for me in the way I would have liked, there were still some shining moments. Here are my three favorite snippets from three of my favorite poems in the book:

From "Boxes Are Best":

Drum on, strum on
New toys are fun
But the boxes they come in are best.
Oh yes!

From "Nitty Gritty Sand Song":

Sing a song of mud pies
Bake a puddle cake
Leaf and branches sandwich
Easy food to make.

I would wonder what a puddle cake was, except I distinctly remember making them as a kid.

From "Dance of the Goldfish":

You haven't any toes
And you haven't any feet,
But you dance through the water
To the Goldfish Beat

The accompanying illustration, where Jesse Bear wears a hat made of newspaper and beats on his own drum, is especially charming, and highlighted the rhythm and beat of the poem and made me imagine what that room must sound like. A bear portrait on the wall shows an elderly bear woman covering her ears, too, which was a cute addition, even if it didn't seem plausible.

I really love the way Carlstrom plays with language. I think she has a gift for capturing poignant childhood emotions in just a few words. Though this format felt less natural than the format used in books one and two, the emotions still rang true, and left me with a good feeling.

[Klarissa]

This book includes several rhymes about Jesse Bear. The rhymes include Jesse Bear talking about time, dressing himself, eating breakfast, playing inside and outside, splashing in puddles, and many more. This book is a short and sweet version of any poem book that I’ve read. The short length of this book would appeal for a classroom because of being able to use it for a lesson. Teaching and inspiring children about poems can be daunting but this book would help a lot. It includes poems that children can relate to and most of all the illustrations are bright and fun. The poems are not only relatable because of the bear being young, but also because these are about day-to-day occurrences.

[Kawsar Chavez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poetry- This is such a cute book! It is a story of a day in the life of Jesses Bear, written as a poem. It begins with the little bear crashing into his parents room while they are sleeping then goes on to the rest of his day dressing up, playing outside, eating lunch etc. Then finally his parents tucking him into bed at night. The book says age 3-5, but I would definitely use this in a second grade library. I would also use it to teach about rhyme scheme as it is a great example! I also like this book because often I feel like children may see poems as one poem with its own subject and not relating to others. This book tells a whole story through a series of different poems.

[Ealthafer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a collection of different rhyming poems all about jesse bear. The first poem starts with Jesse waking up and the last poem is about Jesse going to sleep. This book would be good for teaching poems but also teaching the craft of writing multiple poems about the same character for one book.

[Beth Wood · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Jesse Bear, What will you wear?" was one of my favorite stories - and my students', too - when I taught kindergarten. By contrast, this book of poems about the same bear, by the same author and illustrator, is lackluster and uninspired. Disappointing.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

more cute, family encouraging illustrations with short poems.

[Jaime · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our entire family loves all the Jesse Bear Books! There a must & get read at least once for bedtime every week!

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a delightful book for very young children as they relate to Jesse Bear’s antics and his life with mama and papa bear. The illustrations by Bruce Degen are great.

[Lisa Burbach · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so much fun. It was my daughter's favorite and therefore read over and over again.

[Deborah Harris]

AR Quiz No. 7856 EN Fiction
Accelerated Reader Quiz Information IL: LG - BL: 2.5 - AR Pts: 0.5
Accelerated Reader Quiz Type Information AR Quiz Types: RP, VP