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The Great Bear
The spare, emotionally powerful story of a circus bear who finally breaks free is told with simple narration and intense, expressive illustrations.
Once there was a dancing circus bear who spent her days in a cold, hard cage. Each night she was led to the town square, where acrobats, trapeze artists, and clowns performed for a boisterous crowd. The bear performed, too, year in and year out, lifting her feet and swaying to the music of trumpets, drums, and cymbals. As she danced, some people clapped, and many poked her with sticks or threw stones. One night, however, the bear did not dance. She stood very still. And then she let out a mighty roar. . . . This deeply affecting tale of a bear who escapes cruelty to find a mythical release will resonate with all who love animals, while offering a universal message about freedom and dignity.
Once there was a dancing circus bear who spent her days in a cold, hard cage. Each night she was led to the town square, where acrobats, trapeze artists, and clowns performed for a boisterous crowd. The bear performed, too, year in and year out, lifting her feet and swaying to the music of trumpets, drums, and cymbals. As she danced, some people clapped, and many poked her with sticks or threw stones. One night, however, the bear did not dance. She stood very still. And then she let out a mighty roar. . . . This deeply affecting tale of a bear who escapes cruelty to find a mythical release will resonate with all who love animals, while offering a universal message about freedom and dignity.
40 pages, Hardcover
First published July 12, 2011
2 people are currently reading
106 people want to read
About the author
Libby Gleeson
63 books38 followers"I was born in Young, a small town in south western NSW in 1950. After a few years we moved to Glen Innes, on the northern tablelands and then when I was ten we moved out west to Dubbo. We moved because my father was a schoolteacher and each change meant a promotion for him.
There were six children in the family. I was number three and there wasn't a lot of money. We didn't have television and of course there was no such thing as a computer.
Books and reading were hugely important. I remember going to the library on a Saturday morning and borrowing five or six books and reading them all by Sunday night.
When I finished High School I studied at the University of Sydney. I had a great time studying mainly history but also getting involved in lots of things happening at the University and the city. It was the time of the anti-Vietnam war protests and the rise of the Women's Movement.
I taught for two years in a small town, Picton, which is just outside of Sydney. I really enjoyed that time but I wanted to travel and in 1976 I headed off for five years. I based myself first in Italy where I taught English and then in London where I started writing my first novel, Eleanor, Elizabeth. I attended a creative writing group where the other students pushed me to write a better book. In London I also met my husband. We came back to Sydney in 1980. We've got three daughters.
When we first came back I taught at the University of NSW but now I write full-time. I've written thirty books and I've also taught occasional courses in creative writing and I've visited lots of schools to talk about my work.
I write picture books, novels for young kids and also novels for slightly older readers. I've done a book about writing and also a small amount of writing for television: Bananas in Pyjamas and Magic Mountain.
The writer's life is pretty good. It's a job where you work for yourself, in your daggy track suit, at times that suit you. What more could you ask for?"
from: http://www.libbygleeson.com.au/biogra...
There were six children in the family. I was number three and there wasn't a lot of money. We didn't have television and of course there was no such thing as a computer.
Books and reading were hugely important. I remember going to the library on a Saturday morning and borrowing five or six books and reading them all by Sunday night.
When I finished High School I studied at the University of Sydney. I had a great time studying mainly history but also getting involved in lots of things happening at the University and the city. It was the time of the anti-Vietnam war protests and the rise of the Women's Movement.
I taught for two years in a small town, Picton, which is just outside of Sydney. I really enjoyed that time but I wanted to travel and in 1976 I headed off for five years. I based myself first in Italy where I taught English and then in London where I started writing my first novel, Eleanor, Elizabeth. I attended a creative writing group where the other students pushed me to write a better book. In London I also met my husband. We came back to Sydney in 1980. We've got three daughters.
When we first came back I taught at the University of NSW but now I write full-time. I've written thirty books and I've also taught occasional courses in creative writing and I've visited lots of schools to talk about my work.
I write picture books, novels for young kids and also novels for slightly older readers. I've done a book about writing and also a small amount of writing for television: Bananas in Pyjamas and Magic Mountain.
The writer's life is pretty good. It's a job where you work for yourself, in your daggy track suit, at times that suit you. What more could you ask for?"
from: http://www.libbygleeson.com.au/biogra...
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
August 29, 2011
Ummm, not for kids. Beautiful art, but this bear is clearly being abused at the beginning of the story, and then has enough....I loved the art, charcoal and pastel, and there is a hopeful and a bit mystical ending, which I did like. Would like to know who's going to teach this book?
June 19, 2013
I loved this book. The images, the story, how sad it is, everything. So beautiful
January 3, 2015
Two heart-wrenching stories intertwine through rushed, naked pencil sketches of the title character opposite angry, dark and demanding of her before dream conquers captivity and the bear breaks free.
This is a BEAUTIFUL book, and my 32-words-or-less annotation will never do it justice.
Based upon a dream the author had several years before publication, and with expert author/illustrator collaboration, this exquisite, half-wordless picture book presents the heart-wrenching tale of an abused circus bear and her escape.
The illustrations, simultaneously dream-like and realistic have undertones of medieval art and place - the setting is clearly unmodern, yet at the same time could be – and, of course, Van Gogh’s Starry Night.
Verso pages contain both the text and simple charcoal drawings of the bear, humble, drudging, and captive; these drawings increase in size, intensity, color and complexity as the bear’s pain and anger at her captors and audience grows. The wordless, earthy pastel bled-edge recto pages provide the bear’s perspective. Separating these two sections of the story is a powerful choice; at the story’s climax, this separation shatters as the bear takes hold of her own story.
After the circus travels and stops for a performance, the bear’s monotonous, dreary, caged existence is irritated as she is poked with sticks, hit with rocks, and screamed at to dance by a crude, cruel, demanding, and angry crowd At the climax of this overwhelming, abusive sham of a circus performance, the simple charcoal bear bursts free of both the pages and her chains with a tremendous roar – frightening her tormentors away as she storms throughout the circus.
The remainder of the book continues without words, as the newly empowered bear, illustrated here with softer browns, scales a flagpole and flies away into a star-twinkling sky sky reminiscent of Van Gogh’s Starry Night.
The simple, sparse text is the background of this story; its illustrations perfectly capturing the experience of the bear using dual perspectives are the real viscera of the picture book. Though for an older audience, the messages easily gleaned provide an incredible base point for discussion; theme, emotion and tone positively pour off each page.
This is a BEAUTIFUL book, and my 32-words-or-less annotation will never do it justice.
Based upon a dream the author had several years before publication, and with expert author/illustrator collaboration, this exquisite, half-wordless picture book presents the heart-wrenching tale of an abused circus bear and her escape.
The illustrations, simultaneously dream-like and realistic have undertones of medieval art and place - the setting is clearly unmodern, yet at the same time could be – and, of course, Van Gogh’s Starry Night.
Verso pages contain both the text and simple charcoal drawings of the bear, humble, drudging, and captive; these drawings increase in size, intensity, color and complexity as the bear’s pain and anger at her captors and audience grows. The wordless, earthy pastel bled-edge recto pages provide the bear’s perspective. Separating these two sections of the story is a powerful choice; at the story’s climax, this separation shatters as the bear takes hold of her own story.
After the circus travels and stops for a performance, the bear’s monotonous, dreary, caged existence is irritated as she is poked with sticks, hit with rocks, and screamed at to dance by a crude, cruel, demanding, and angry crowd At the climax of this overwhelming, abusive sham of a circus performance, the simple charcoal bear bursts free of both the pages and her chains with a tremendous roar – frightening her tormentors away as she storms throughout the circus.
The remainder of the book continues without words, as the newly empowered bear, illustrated here with softer browns, scales a flagpole and flies away into a star-twinkling sky sky reminiscent of Van Gogh’s Starry Night.
The simple, sparse text is the background of this story; its illustrations perfectly capturing the experience of the bear using dual perspectives are the real viscera of the picture book. Though for an older audience, the messages easily gleaned provide an incredible base point for discussion; theme, emotion and tone positively pour off each page.
May 2, 2016
Cerita tentang beruang penari di sebuah sirkus. Untuk ukuran buku anak-anak, ini lumayan suram. Apalagi didukung dengan tone ilustrasi secara keseluruhannya pun cenderung gelap dan hitam.
Ending-nya......... happy ending, tapi agak sendu. Cenderung open ending. Pembaca bisa menginterpretasikan sendiri apa yang terjadi kepada si beruang itu setelah meloloskan diri dari sirkus yang menyiksanya. Saya pribadi sih... membayangkan hal yang agak buruk. Well, disebutkan di buku kalau beruang itu akhirnya "set free", tapi bebas dalam arti apa, itu yang saya raguin.
Menurut saya, kalau anak-anak baca buku ini, pasti bakal tertanam bener-bener di memori mereka. Karena cerita ini, meski singkat dengan sedikit halaman dan sedikit teks, atmosfernya sangat kuat.
Intinya, ini buku yang bagus, tapi suram.
Baca gratisan waktu di pameran BigBad Wolf 2016. Gratisan... karena saya gak punya cukup uang untuk membeli semua buku-buku bagus itu, jadinya cuma nongkrong di lokasi pameran berjam-jam buat baca-baca gratisan :"(((
Ending-nya......... happy ending, tapi agak sendu. Cenderung open ending. Pembaca bisa menginterpretasikan sendiri apa yang terjadi kepada si beruang itu setelah meloloskan diri dari sirkus yang menyiksanya. Saya pribadi sih... membayangkan hal yang agak buruk. Well, disebutkan di buku kalau beruang itu akhirnya "set free", tapi bebas dalam arti apa, itu yang saya raguin.
Menurut saya, kalau anak-anak baca buku ini, pasti bakal tertanam bener-bener di memori mereka. Karena cerita ini, meski singkat dengan sedikit halaman dan sedikit teks, atmosfernya sangat kuat.
Intinya, ini buku yang bagus, tapi suram.
Baca gratisan waktu di pameran BigBad Wolf 2016. Gratisan... karena saya gak punya cukup uang untuk membeli semua buku-buku bagus itu, jadinya cuma nongkrong di lokasi pameran berjam-jam buat baca-baca gratisan :"(((
July 5, 2016
I wasn't a huge fan of the illustrations, but I liked how in the corner of the left page was an illustration of the bear and the right page showed the people's point of view. This book is an eye opener into the consequences of having animals in the circus who are forced to do things that they aren't naturally meant to be able to do. I didn't really understand the last illustration, which ends the book on a cliffhanger. I interpreted it to be the bear setting herself free, but the book just ends with the bear leaping into the night sky with the reader not knowing what happens to her once she is free.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 10, 2014
2.5 actually for me. I like the story: a cruelly treated circus bear finally manages to stand up for herself and flees into the heavens to become Ursa Major. I also like the metaphor for freedom of living and dignity. The art I didn't actually car for. I understand that it is a bleaker topic than most kids picture books, but the art is soooo dark. The villagers eyes are soooo creepy. I wouldn't have liked this one as a child.
August 30, 2011
Maybe it's my lack of sleep last night, but I don't get it. I think it's a nice story and the illustrations are gorgeous. But as a librarian, I don't know what to do with it. It's a picture book, but I think the subject matter and illustrations are too serious for little ones. Maybe I'm caught up in my "it doesn't fit anywhere" thoughts to truly enjoy it.
January 12, 2012
I don't have the right shelf for this. I is a picture book, but not for kids. Based on the author's dream, this is a dark story. Could be paired with Water for Elephants or any other story of abused animals or people. Beautiful sketches that mirror the tone and mood of this book.
April 15, 2012
A parable about cruelty and the way people sometimes treat the weak (in this case a performing bear), and the triumph of formerly held-back power to escape and reach for the stars. Dark and yet triumphant.
October 23, 2013
the great bear is a very interesting book which takes a sharp turn in the joirney of fairytales. a bear trying to escape from an abused life filled with animal cruelty. its time to stand up for yourself. will this be the bears last breath?
July 1, 2011
Richly layered and stunning!
Want to read
July 21, 2011Kirkus Star
July 29, 2011
Excellent book for adults and older children. Definitely too intense a subject matter and artwork for the wee ones.
October 5, 2011
Sad though poignant. But inhumanity if finally set free. The stars remind us to free ourselves. The lesson is for the reader as well as the listener...........
August 4, 2016
Story of how Ursa Major, or the Great Bear constellation, came to be. The moral of the story can be summed up with the lyrics of one of my favorite Tim Minchin songs: Bears Don't Dig On Dancing. :)
February 15, 2012
great book , dark pictures about a bear that is mistreated, for children in years 5 -6
June 26, 2019
Is this the greatest picturebook of all time? I think so. With themes of anti-circus, pro-animal opinions, The Great Bear follows a circus-performing bear and her quest for liberation. With a sparse narrative and haunting, dark pictures of a ghastly crowd, Gleeson and Greder's picturebook makes for a strong argument as to how we as a people have determined that animals are for our entertainment. Honestly, it's incredible, absolutely incredible. Great for grades PreK-2.
Review cross-listed here!
Review cross-listed here!
April 15, 2023
Dark art, that works effectively. Perversely, I believe that I would have loved this even more when I was a young girl. It reminds me just a bit of Moon Man, the masterpiece by Tomi Ungerer, which I did love even then (and still do).
I read an archived copy on openlibrary.org.
I read an archived copy on openlibrary.org.
August 3, 2018
Not for kids, really. But I thought I would like it and I did. Medieval circus bear who escapes and plays on the mythology of Ursa Major. Pretty (really pretty, and kind of dark) imagining of the stars.
January 11, 2018
haunting and beautiful
June 27, 2018
Powerful story, more suited to the secondary school environment, this is not a happily ever after story, it moved me to tears.
Read
August 20, 2023<3
August 28, 2016
Based upon a dream Libby Gleeson had in 1995, The Great Bear is an intense story about an abused bear in a medieval circus somewhere in Europe, that has the courage to escape captivity.
"A dancing circus bear…
To the music of trumpets, drums and cymbals she danced. She lifted her feet and swayed to the sound and some of the crowd clapped and cheered. Others poked her with sticks and threw stones at her ragged coat."
Armin Greder’s illustrations are amazing again. In the first half of the book, there is only the silhouette of a weak, oppressed bear while the second part presents a confident, fully coloured animal that has finally become free. Because he wanted deep meaning beyond words, Greder insisted on not having written text on the second part of the book, which brings a more profound symbolism of the story.
See full review on blog:
https://fromwordstoworlds.wordpress.c...
"A dancing circus bear…
To the music of trumpets, drums and cymbals she danced. She lifted her feet and swayed to the sound and some of the crowd clapped and cheered. Others poked her with sticks and threw stones at her ragged coat."
Armin Greder’s illustrations are amazing again. In the first half of the book, there is only the silhouette of a weak, oppressed bear while the second part presents a confident, fully coloured animal that has finally become free. Because he wanted deep meaning beyond words, Greder insisted on not having written text on the second part of the book, which brings a more profound symbolism of the story.
See full review on blog:
https://fromwordstoworlds.wordpress.c...
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews