REVIEW: IT’S CHEER UP THE LONELY DAY!

Even the optimist has down day now and then. If you can relate to needing a little cheering up, read this picture book to see how Bear finds his Smile again: 

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​TITLE: LOOKING FOR SMILE
AUTHOR: Ellen Tarlow
ILLUSTRATOR: Lauren Stringer
PUBLISHER: Beach Lane Books/2020
OPENING LINES: 
 
Bear and Smile were always together.
In the mornings, Bear woke up and stretched out wide across his bed. 
Smile woke up too and stretched out wide across Bear’s face.
“Good morning,” said Bear.

​This is a sweet story about Bear who, I imagine, is an ordinarily cheerful guy. So, when he wakes up one day to find that Smile is missing, he’s not quite sure what to do. He looks for Smile in all his favorite places, but Smile is nowhere to be found. Finally, Bird arrives, and (spoiler alert), in time, Smile appears. Ellen Tarlow cleverly tells this tale by personifying “smile” and Lauren Stringer’s adorable watercolor, gouache, and acrylic illustrations capture the right mood on every page. If you need a little cheering up, I recommend you read LOOKING FOR SMILE.
 
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