Bear and Fish are best friends, and every day Fish decides on their activity, until one day Fish lets Bear decide instead. But Bear can't think up a new idea when all she sees are the supplies from their past adventures. The ending was predictable, but I liked Bear's anxiety that she would lose her friend Fish, and when she does think she's lost Fish in the fog, is reassured that even if she can't see them, friends are always there no matter what.

This is a really cute story about a bear and fish who are great friends. Fish is always coming up with good ideas to have fun. When it’s bears turn he gets worried he won’t come up with a great idea. This is a book of fun, and friendship. The illustrations are cute and add so much to the story.

Fish always has ideas for activities to do with her best friend Bear. Now, it’s Bear’s turn to come up with an idea. Try as she might, her ideas are not original, or she imagines them ending in disaster (even though this is often the case with Fish’s ideas). Worse yet, Bear fears that her lack of a good idea means she is not a good friend, despite Fish’s reassurance that they will be friends “always and forever.” Of course, at the story's end, Bear comes up with a big idea that will surprise and delight readers. The illustrations have an engaging complexity by interspersing single and double-page spreads, character’s in isolation and in the more expansive or textured setting, and a few pages offer a frameless graphic novel format. The characters are wonderfully expressive. Bear’s escalating worries are offset by color saturation and brightness that lightens the mood and feels reassuring, like nothing really bad can happen here. Friendship, perseverance, and ingenuity are the heart of this story.

Thank you to NetGalley along with the publisher for the eARC! A cute adventure of Bear and Fish. This book has very cute pictures throughout and I think any young animal lover will enjoy reading this book.

"Bear's Big Idea" is a sweet book about friendship and taking turns. I really liked the concept but would have enjoyed it even more if there were some discussion about how to take turns a little more evenly than Bear and Fish did in the story (for example, every other time or so)- this idea is something that is discussed in our house a lot so I'd love to see it reflected in a book! However, my children and I enjoyed it overall and we were still able to discuss how they could have taken turns even better! The illustrations are adorable and sure to please young readers.

Bear and fish have wildly fun days. Most days fish has the ideas on what the two should do. When it’s bears tired bear worries that they won’t have a new unusual idea. And it takes some conjuring, but eventually bear learn that ideas are like friends. They’re there when you need them.

Bear’s Big Idea by Sandra Nickel with wonderful illustrations by il Sung Na is an adorable book. Nickel manages to teach us how to be patient, kind, and encouraging with our friends and with ourselves in a patient, kind, and encouraging way! Her lyrical prose carries the reader along for a glorious ride with Bear and Fish. Readers will love watching Bear as he hatches his “big idea”! Readers should check out the first Big Bear and Little Fish book. I love this duo. Can’t wait for the next Bear and Fish adventure!

This is a great book about friendship and how friends should stick together through thick and thin. It also encourages kids to use their imagination and to use what you have to make do. IT has great illustrations, colorful and whimsical. Thanks Netgalley and Lerner Publishing Group for the opportunity to read this lovely book.

Bear's best friend fish comes up with new ideas each day for a fun activity. When it's Bear's turn, he's stumped. Fish expresses confidence in Bear coming up with an idea and states they will always be friends. Looking back at what they had done the previous days, Bear does come up with an idea for a wonderful adventure.
Delightful illustrations and story of the power of friendship.
#BearsBigIdea #CarolhodaBooks #NetGalley

I love this book. It has lessons on friendship and creativity. This can lend itself to many lessons in the classroom. Bear is a wonderful friend who wants to do something great for his best friend, but nothing seems good enough. What can be a NEW big idea? Having kids figure out what Bear's big idea will be will lead to wonderful conversations. Great read aloud.

A great story about friendship. It can be difficult to navigate relationships, thinking you’re too much or not enough for someone else. Being more introverted and not always having big ideas and plans can make someone feel like they aren’t a good friend. Like they might loose people.

Bear wants to have an idea for her friend fish. Something different and new and big. She worries and thinks she’ll never find it, but fish assures her they will stick by them.

In the end, all of the past ideas combine into a new big idea. They sail together and have a special moment of realizing how important their friendship is. “…Ideas are a lot like good friends. Even if you can’t see them, they are always and forever there.”

Bear and Fish forge a friendship. Fish was full of ideas. They climbed the highest tree. They rode their sled to the store. They sloshed in mud puddles. Then they made a tent out of a blanket. All these things had been Fish's ideas. Now it was time to try some of Bear's ideas. But Bear was having a really hard time trying to decide what to do. The pressure was on. Then Bear thought of a great idea!

Don't be fooled by the unassuming cover art. This is an amazing book for young readers about creativity, friendship, and fun. The incredible illustrations inside make this tale forever memorable and inspire joy!

Bear wants to find a brand-new big idea for her best friend because Fish asked him to. It was harder than she thought!
As Fish says: "Just because you can't see something, doesn't mean it's not there"
The illustrations by Il Sung Na are simple and convey everything a reader could wish for.
Perfect for reading alone or WITH someone of any age including ESL, and great for gifting to everyone, especially to a school, church library, or your local public library!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book on Adobe Digital Editions from Lerner Publishing Group/Carolrhoda Books ® via NetGalley. Thank you!

A story about Fish and Bear’s friendship.
Fish is always coming up with fun ideas and what adventures to try each day. When it’s Bear’s turn to come up with an idea but is stuck. Instead of giving up she starts looking for inspiration.
This is such a cute story and my lil one enjoyed reading it too.

Pub Date - September 10th, 2024

Thanks @netgalley for eARC

Fun and creative story about friendship and having fun with whatever you have around! I can see a fun follow up activity by giving similar items to kids to come up with something else they could do!

This picture book features an unlikely friendship between a fish and a bear. Days of the week are partially reviewed as Fish comes up with activities to occupy their time. When it comes time for Bear to make the decisions, she becomes anxious that she won’t come up with a brand-new big idea. The pictures are fun and entertaining. My 6-year old laughed and thought it was silly, rating the book 4.5 stars. I enjoyed the creativity and the repetition makes this great for the youngest readers to follow along.

This book celebrates creative thinking and resilience by following bear on his quest to discover new ideas. The illustrations are beautiful and exciting, and the unique expressions of the main character are a wonderful touch. This book would draw any child in and encourage them to think outside of the box when faced with a dilemma.

The book was beautifully written and the illustrations are very whimsical. The author made careful word choices that were very impactful. Overall, the book was well written and I did really enjoy it.

Bear's Big Idea by Sandra Nickel is an adorable book with fabulous illustrations.

Loved it. Definitely recommend.