The Bear Must Go On Hardcover – Picture Book, February 11, 2020

This delightful story about a musically gifted but very shy bear places Dev Petty in the spotlight again as the author of picture books that amuse, illuminate, and inspire. Bear’s zany small friends Rabbit, Squirrel, and Other Squirrel excitedly but chaotically “plan” to put on a show for their furry forest friends. Content to serve as their scribe, Bear takes meticulous notes on their hilarious suggestions (the curtain must be “sparkly,” the tickets “very shiny”) while softly humming an original tune. When the audience gathers and the curtain draws open, the team suddenly realizes to their horror they forgot to write the show itself. Bear suggests his friends might sing his song, but they insist only he can sing it. The bear must go on! Which Bear does with a killer performance, his light no longer shyly hidden under a bushel. This is a lovely confidence-building book for kids who might need some nudging now and then to reveal their talents not only to others but to themselves.

A story about animal friends encouraging and supporting one another to ultimately put together a fabulous show. Dev has done it again with her wit and storytelling talent. The sentence about the mole made me laugh out loud! The illustrations will put a smile on your face and coupled with the detailed writing, you and the young ones will want to read it over and over again.

This book makes me chuckle every time I open it up. Not to mention my kids! I love each of the characters’ distinct personalities, and how they work together. Plus the themes of stage fright, friendship, creativity…I’m sure I’m forgetting others. Highly recommend!

Dev Petty and Brandon Todd have created a sweet story with delightful illustrations. With its humorous threads and repeating phrases, it's a great read-aloud. Through Bear's challenges, we all learn to face our fears, find courage within ourselves and forget about perfection.

This book has a fun twist and great pictures. The middle had me laughing out loud.

Sometimes it's hard to be brave and share our talents. This book led to a great discussion between me and my little girl about doing just that. The story is fun and the artwork has lots of little surprises that keep the readers engaged; perfect for read-alouds.

"The Bear Must Go On" is a picture book about stepping outside of your comfort zone to share your gifts. In this story, animal friends of the forest have decided to put on the very biggest and best show. As they plan every detail - from the costumes and invitations, to the curtain and refreshments - their friend, Bear, records the details. Bear's friends, however, overlook a very important detail... the show itself. The animals' preoccupation with stage minutiae creates a lovely contrast with Bear's dutiful nature and introversion. Readers who love quick dialogue and books with true heart will find a lot to love in this woodland theater tale.

The animals in the forest want to put on a show and bear is taking notes about the tickets, the hats, the snack. Everyone is excited (except for bear who is shy and doesn’t want to be in the show.)Everything comes together and all the other animals show up for the show. However, there is one problem they all forgot about. They don’t have a script. Now what do they do? Great ending. #no spoilers