name that children's book

December 17, 2006 12:14 AM

looking for the title and author of a children's book about a polar bear. i don't remember the specifics of the story except for the fact that it ends, approximately, with the line: "polar bear, underwear." what i remember of the story is that the polar bear is on is way to the shower and involves him stripping down to his "polar bear underwear." i remember the artwork being somewhat strange.
posted by defmute to writing & language (7 comments total)

What about To the Zoo: Animal Poems?

A menagerie of animal poems set against a kaleidoscope of color. From wondering whether a polar bear is swimming in his underwear to the thought that a feather found is a letter from a bird.…

posted by wemayfreeze at 12:47 AM on December 17, 2006

This might be a long shot, but was it:
Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? by Martin/Carle
I don't know if it fits your remembered storyline, but Eric Carle's art is distinctive.
posted by dicaxpuella at 1:55 AM on December 17, 2006

Okay, sorry for the second post, but here's another long shot, as it looks like it hasn't been published yet:
Polar Bears Don't Need Underwear by Bob Staake
posted by dicaxpuella at 2:01 AM on December 17, 2006

I have that book. I can't find it in my shelves here, so it's probably back at my Mum's. If nobody's answered this before I go visiting for Christmas, I'll be sure to dig it out and let you know.
posted by flabdablet at 2:53 AM on December 17, 2006

There's also the Daniel Pinkwater "Larry" books, about a polar bear named Larry who likes muffins. I've read At The Hotel Larry, which was funny and had great illustrations, but there are others in the series. The one I read seemed to have the sense of humor that could lead to rhyming polar bear with underwear.

Here are a few other Pinkwater/polar bear books (by no means an exhaustive list):
Young Larry
Ice Cream Larry
Dancing Larry
Irving and Muktuk: Two Bad Bears
Bad Bears in the Big City: An Irving & Muktuk Story
Bad Bears and a Bunny: An Irving and Muktuk Story

posted by jessicak at 8:52 AM on December 17, 2006

When I first read this post I immediately thought that it could be a book by Sandra Boynton.
posted by Sassyfras at 9:37 AM on December 17, 2006

Slept on it, remembered it. It's Bare Bear by Jez Alborough.
posted by flabdablet at 12:34 PM on December 17, 2006