Bear Goes Sugaring

K-Gr 4--Eaton's latest picture book discusses how Bear makes her own maple syrup. The author previously wrote "The Truth About Your Favorite Animals" series and lives in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, which served as inspiration for Bear's story. The text describes the process of sugaring from beginning to end: when to tap maple trees, the tools needed for gathering sap, and the steps it takes to turn sap into delicious syrup. Answers and alternatives to "What if..." questions are included, like "What if the bucket I used to gather sap last year has a hole in the bottom this year?" (Bear suggests using an empty milk jug with a hole cut near the top.) The illustrations show even more details, such as what an evaporator looks like, and the tools historically used in the sugaring process. The drawings act as a visual aid, especially if sugaring is new to readers. Humorous commentary from Bear's friends Squirrel and Dog may reflect what readers are thinking throughout the story. At the end of the book, Eaton offers suggestions for further reading. Because there are not many recent informational books about sugaring, this is a good, kid-friendly selection. VERDICT This title could serve as a great teaching resource for science curricula about trees and seasons and act as a wonderful mentor text for informational writing. A strong purchase for elementary school and public library collections.--Kristin Unruh, Siersma Elementary School, Warren, MI

Getting real maple syrup from tree to table is no day in the park, but Bear is up for the job. She marked the sugar maples during the fall so she can distinguish them from species that have less sugary sap; she even knows how to build a backyard evaporator. Most importantly (and the biggest takeaway for readers): Bear is a careful planner and diligent worker who also has vast reserves of patience--even though it takes 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup, and especially when her pancakes-obsessed friends, a gopher, a squirrel, and a dog, keep mentioning their affinity for the food ("How are those pancakes coming?" asks the dog as Bear taps her first maple). Watercolor and pencil illustrations by Eaton (the Truth About series) illustrations have a cheery, get-'er-done orderliness, efficiently conveying a wealth of information with comics-style panels, cinematic framing, text callouts, and just the right number of comic asides from Bear's peanut gallery. The afterword takes a broader view, noting that sugaring helps preserve stands of sugar maples, and that the result isn't "manufactured in a distant facility with chemical processes. No corporations. Just backyards, buckets, campfires, and friends." (And pancakes?) Ages 4-8. Agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio. (Jan.)