Review to come to blog/Goodreads late July/close to the release day.

I received this book from Netgalley + the publisher in exchange of an honest review.

I just couldn't resist. A book about a bear who finds a love for reading? YES please! 

In this fabulous book we meet a bear with an adorable bowtie who is just wandering through the forest and then finds something special. A book! He is mesmerised and he has just the friend to help him out with what this fantastic thing is + help him actually be able to read it. And yes, that friend is an owl. Yep. A bit expected, I would so like to see another animal be the wise one for once. Back to the bear, after his long lessons he has a thirst for books now, and I loved that, though I also felt for him as finding books in a forest? Not that easy. I was curious how he would find more books to read!

Well, what happens next was both fun and I just wanted to yeet some snobbish people. Yep. Bear finds a way. But along the way he comes across some snobbish and mean people who think that Books aren't for bears! I just wanted to hug that poor old bear and drag him home to my own collection! But thankfully, very thankfully, he comes across one place that is open to him and allows him all the books he wants! I was so happy that I was just clapping my hands in happiness! I loved the ending and I loved that he spread the bookish love~

The art was just fabulous and I love the style!

All in all, this is a perfect book for people (and animals) who love books and love it when someone discovers a love for it~

Thanks to Capstone and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy!

Bear finds a book and Owl teaches him to read. He looks for more books but can find any! He goes into town to find more books but no one wants a bear around. Then he meets a wonderful and kind woman from the library that allows Bear to come browse the stacks and find a comfy spot to rest. She sets him up with a library card and a whole stack of borrowed books! Bear is so happy and content!!

I love Bear! He is so lovable. The illustrations are beautiful and the story is great!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book.

Books Aren't for Bears follows a bear who discovers his look of books. He starts reading with his fellow forest friends and quickly learns that he just wants more and more. Then he finds a bicycle and feels like he wants to return it to its owner so he ventures into the big city to find the person it belongs to while also coming across all sorts of places that have books. At each place, he gets told that books aren't for bears but rather for children or people but definitely not him. That is until he comes across the local library and the librarian invites him in to join the space and he ends the book with a library card and an entire stack of books to take home! It's a very cute little tale.

Bear likes to read! So reading is for everyone!

It was fun read and i love the illustration, it’s cute! But i could still focus on the text. So it’s great

The childs would love this book

This was super cute with an amazing message that "books are for everyone!" The art is amazing and I can't wait for this to published so I can purchase it for my nephew.

Such a fun children's book! I read it with my five year old and he really enjoyed it. The illustrations are great and the story is really engaging. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this books to read early!

You can be so content with what you have around you, and then you find books, and your life changes forever.

You know what would be even better? finding a library. I absolutely, absolutely loved this little tale - reading is for everyone and it touched my reader's heart!

Thank you Netgalley for sending me this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!
I thought this book was really cute! The illustrations were beautiful and colorful. I think they will really capture the attention of children and adults. I love the message of this book to encourage kids to not only read but also to utilize their local library! I don't read children's books often but this one was notable for sure!

My 9 year old son read this book and thought it was great. It is a fun book. The pictures were good. The most important thing was that he was trying to read all the books. As a teacher I liked the moral to keep trying and don’t give up. I will be buying this book for my classroom.

This book is an ode to libraries and librarians. They believe that learning is for EVERYONE.

Bear stumbles upon a book in his woods and his life is never the same again. Owl takes him under his wing and teaches him how to read which causes an insatiable thirst in Bear for more and more books!

Bear focuses on the city where surely there are lots of books there for him to read and enjoy.
Off he goes to pursue his dream but as he reaches the bustling busy streets he is disappointed and sad to discover that some people think that "Books aren't for bears!" and shoo him away.

Will his dream of reading more and more books be shattered? Is it possible Bear can find a place where he will be included and make his dream a reality?

The colourful kid-friendly illustrations are delightful and the woodland animals are adorable. The book is a shout-out to libraries and librarians and the importance of inclusiveness and reading. Being a librarian in an elementary school myself in my early career I whole-heartedly agree. One can never own, share, read, or enjoy enough books. I love the book and highly recommend it.

Cute book and concept. There was one small sentence that threw me for a loop about how adults don't notice anything important. Not to be THAT PERSON but it didn't fit into the plot at all and seemed disrespectful honestly.

A very cute children's book about a love for reading and books, even when someone tells you it's not for you or you shouldn't read. Reading is for everyone, which this book makes very clear. It also introduces children to the library, what it is and how it works. Super super cute book and I would highly recommend reading this with kids.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Bear finds out that the library is a place where everyone is welcome including him! I have always loved that a library is a place that does not discriminate. Whether you are young or old, rich or poor….or you live in the forest. I love the library and I love books that promote going there!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC! This is a fun read about a Bear who loves books and goes on an adventure into the city. A great message too that anyone can read and anyone can go to the library!
This book is full of fun colorful pictures that draw the reader in. The font in this book is fun as well!

A cute picture book with a sweet message about the magic of BOOKS, and leave it to a LIBRARIAN and a library to save the day! When Bear makes a surprising discovery of a BOOK in the forest, he feels the need to find more books! So he embarks on a journey to find more books in the city, but he's met by everyone with screams of, BOOKS ARE NOT FOR BEARS! But finally, he finds the library and a kind librarian, and the day is saved!
The illustrations in this book are full of life and color and beautifully capture the bear’s journey. I highly recommend this one for all the little bears in your life!

What a beautiful story about a bear falling in love with the enjoyment of reading. I hope this book will inspire young children to love books so much that they are always looking for something new to read. Wonderful.

Reading unlocks so many levels of joy and it is also universal. To see books where animals learn to read and fall in love with reading is special. Bear is such a kindhearted bear and when he discovers reading he can't get enough. The struggle he faces with finding someone whose willing to let him read I think is a good talking point to talk with children. It can lead to donating books, creating and free library ect. As always the library saves the day. I love the bright colors and illustrations in this book as well. This book leaves you smiling and wanting a trip to your local library.

Love love love this book! Books are for Bears and everyone! What a great message! Always keep pushing forward and looking for the things you enjoy.

I think that this is a cute little read for future bookworms! The illustrations are very pretty and the story is fun

Books are for children, not for Bears! This statement couldn't be further from the truth for this curious bear. Books Aren't for Bears follows the literary interest of a woodland bear who enters the big city to seek out more books. Along his journey we see the stigma of society that books aren't for anyone but people. He proves us wrong and shows his audience that books can be enjoyed by all! My family enjoyed this read and look forward to future titles by Mark Barry.