Maudie and Bear

Maudie tests love to its limits, and Bear passes the test every time. Maudie’s world revolves around Maudie. Bear’s world also revolves around Maudie—he is as patient and solid as a rock. Maudie is so confident of Bear’s love that she makes demands, throws tantrums, lays down rules and lets Bear do all the work, knowing he will love her unconditionally. And he does … right to the end.

“"Here's what's wonderful about this book: Maudie, beautifully illustrated by Blackwood, is an utterly realistic Everychild whose concerns center around herself. . . . What's also special is the evocative art, softly colored with almost indistinct lines, that places Maudie and Bear in an earlier era (save the sunscreen), with Maudie looking a bit like Christopher Robin." -- Booklist starred review”

"A delicious collection thanks to the way it sensitively and beautifully captures the inner life of an inventive little girl as she projects herself into a variety of imagined social scenarios, with Bear alternately playing the part of mother, suitor, sibling and friend. . . . It's all a form of real-life practice, just as so much of child's play is. And why wouldn't a bear be the perfect partner for it?" --New York Times Book Review

"This lovely British import about Maudie and Bear centers on the sweet pair's afternoon adventure. . . . The kidlike logic and Ormerod's spare text in combination with Blackwood's painterly soft colors are a perfect match. A charming choice." --School Library Journal on The Bike Ride
"With her Mary Janes, hair bow, and wardrobe of vintage shifts and jumpers, Blackwood's supremely confident Maudie is a girl plucked from the pages of Kate Greenaway. As her best friend/parent surrogate, Bear weathers Maudie's diva behavior with stoic patience, unconditional love, and a willingness both to do Maudie's bidding and the resultant washing up. . . . Ormerod's (Molly and Her Dad) writing is a model of economy and comic understatement, and Maudie and Bear's interactions will be familiar to readers of all ages and temperaments." --Publishers Weekly
"Here's what's wonderful about this book: Maudie, beautifully illustrated by Blackwood, is an utterly realistic Everychild whose concerns center around herself. . . . What's also special is the evocative art, softly colored with almost indistinct lines, that places Maudie and Bear in an earlier era (save the sunscreen), with Maudie looking a bit like Christopher Robin." --Booklist starred review

Freya Blackwood was born in Edinburgh and grew up in Orange in NSW, Australia where she now lives with her daughter Ivy. After graduating from UTS in Visual Communications, Freya worked in the film industry as a production assistant, runner and effects technician. She began illustrating picture books in 2002 and has since been shortlisted for, and won many prestigious awards, including the Kate Greenaway Medal in 2010. Award-winning titles include Two Summers with John Heffernan (2004 CBCA Chrichton Award winner) and Amy & Louis with Libby Gleeson (2007 CBCA Picture Book of the Year for Younger Readers) with Scholastic Press; Little Hare titles Maudie and Bear with the late Jan Ormerod (2011 CBCA Early Childhood Book of the Year); Look, A Book! with Libby Gleeson (2012 CBCA Picture Book of the Year); Go To Sleep Jessie with Libby Gleeson (2015 CBCA Early Childhood Book of the Year) and My Two Blankets with Irena Kobald (2015 CBCA Picture Book of the Year); and from Allen & Unwin The Cleo Stories: The Necklace and The Present with Libby Gleeson (CBCA Winner Book of the Year: Younger Readers). Freya works and creates in her backyard studio. Visit her website here / 

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