The illustrations are beautiful while the story leaves me a little confused. I didn't understand why the bear had a rain cloud above him because he fells invisible. However, I keep coming back to the beautiful illustrations.

A lovely quiet lyrical story, but ultimately I'm not sure that it's conclusion did what it was hoping to. I'm not sure I can imagine reading this with a child. It wants to be a nice story about appreciating differences while being ourselves ... but I'm not sure what was going on. How did the bear make rain? The old lady died ... but it wasn't really a story about processing loss.. Also was the bear happy with themself or do they want to be colourful? And is colourful the opposite of invisible?

He lives in the woods alone. His days are mostly gray. He's lonely. He feels invisible. Then somebody new moves in...

Tundra Books and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It will be published August 4th.

His new neighbor brings color and noise. He's not sure if he likes that. Then one day he hears her being mournful because her beautiful flowers sre dying. He waters them and she gives him a hug. Soon they are good friends.

When she leaves, she leaves him a present. He'll never be without color again...

A very sweet story with beautiful pictures! I’ll be incorporating this one into my therapy curriculum!

The Invisible Bear
By: Cecile Metzger
3.8 / 5.0

This picture book had beautiful pictures and colors. I loved the gray watercolor style for the bear and then the complete opposite for Madame Odette. The story is short and to the point. It shows that no one is invisible; everyone is seen by someone. It has more depth that the parents can see, but I don’t think a child will understand that the bear is depressed and lonely until Madame Odette moves in next to him. It’s a quick bedtime story, but they will probably want another one read to them after.



Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Invisible-Bear-Cecile-Metzger/dp/0735266875/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=The+invisible+bear+metzger&qid=1591498039&sr=8-1


Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-invisible-bear-cecile-metzger/1134846640?ean=9780735266872

This review will appear on my blog on August 4, 2020.

The artwork was beautiful, but I didn’t enjoy the story. I think I understand the message it was trying to get across, but it felt too simple and abstract and I feel like it missed the mark. It could have used a few more pages to really flesh out the point it was trying to make.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The illustrations in this book are captivating - whimsical and full of details that young children would enjoy. However, the plot is somewhat confusing and may be difficult for a child to understand. I kept thinking I was *missing* something and was ultimately left frustrated and unsatisfied.

This is a book about the impact that meeting someone where they are can have on how they feel about themselves. The bear feels invisible, but a sweet old lady, Madame Odette, moves in next door and alters how he lives his life. And even after she flew away with the dragonflies she loved so much, his life still remains changed. The illustrations are ethereal with a splash of whimsy. A very sweet story.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* Really liked the art work of this book, this would be a good bedtime story too because its short but has lots to look at, love the watercolor :)

A soft and beautifully illustrated story about the invisible bear who becomes friends with a loud and very visible neighbor. Will the bear learn to be loud and visible too?

This sweet book captured me. The pictures are absolutely gorgeous, just spending time closing looking at the artwork is a pleasure. The simple and kind story of the bear and Madame Odette finding a way to live together with very different temperments echos the idea of living together and learning from each others ways with joy and interest. Well done!

This story didn't make much sense to me. A bear who feels invisible and a woman who lives vibrantly help each other, sharing the joys of their quiet life and colourful life. I don't think the message is that clear, especially to children and the ending is quite abrupt and leaves questions - if the bear showed Madame Odette the good side of a peaceful life why did she leave?

The illustrations weren't the best, while the colour palette was beautiful, the perspectives were off and the drawings were quite simple. However, where the illustrations shined were in the flora and this I think it where the main problem with this story is. With all of the effort put into the illustrations of the plants and how many times different types of plants were shown rather unnecessarily, it seems that this book was based off of what they wanted to draw rather than what they wanted to tell.

The illustrations in the book, The Invisible Bear, are absolutely stunning. I loved the juxtaposition between the starch-white of the bear's world and the beautiful flowers of Madame Odette's world. I do believe this message of this story is beyond most children that will read it. I don't think they will understand Madame Odette's death and what even happens in the story. It is one of those books that I think adults will more resonate with. Especially if they have lost someone like Madame Odette from their own lives.

Bear is invisible and enjoys the quiet solitude, until a new neighbor comes along with her garden and noise. They become friends and Bear realizes he wasn't as invisible as he thought he was all along. I liked parts of this book, especially the illustrations. They were beautiful and detailed. I'm not sure I enjoyed the story as much as I could have. It felted like it was missing a few pages that would have tied the story together. Instead it felt stilted and awkward. I found the ending to be abrupt. I think there could be some good discussion involved with the theme of the book, but the ending left me unsatisfied.

Oh my word, this book is so lovely I actually cried. The story is about a bear who's invisible until a colorful neighbor brightens his world. The illustrations are beautifully done. Such a great little story with meaning.

'The Invisible Bear' is short but sweet, with the most subtle and beautiful drawings. This book would be great for children ages 3 to 5 years old. The moral is to accept others even if they seem different as we all complement each other. I loved this one!

Thank you NetGalley and Tundra Books for providing this ARC.

My rating for this book is mostly due to the gorgeous illustrations through the book and the story is cute, however it is a little confusing. This children's book is about a bear who lives alone in a grey house and is living a pretty repetitive boring life and feels invisible. The one day a colorful, vibrant, and almost energetic lady moves in next door and changes his world forever. He realizes that he is not invisible once she leaves.

My adult brain reading this feels like it is all a visual representation about coming out of depression and into the colorful world and learning that there is so much around you to be appreciative of, but I am not sure that younger readers will experience this book in the same way with their limited knowledge about such topics and themes.

The artwork throughout the book is absolutely amazing though and I really loved it. It is soft and yet bright and airy and really brought a smile to my face as I read this ebook.

I understand the concept of the book (I think) but I didn't really "get" it. The Bear lives in a colorless world and seems to like it that way. Then a woman moves in next door and bring color. She then gets upset because her flowers need rain. Somehow, and this is where I got confused, the Bear gives rain to her flowers. I think there are metaphors in there but I don't understand them enough to explain to a child. I will say that the illustrations are beautiful. They loosely remind me of Jon Klassen, who I'm a big fan of. Just can't see myself using this as a read-aloud or recommending this to a patron.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This is a cute book about a bear who gets a new neighbor. His home goes from quiet and dark to loud and crazy. Lovely illustrations.

“The Invisible Bear” by Cecile Metzger is an adorable book about a bear befriending a new neighbor. His surroundings go from quiet and calm to colorful and filled with love. My family and I enjoyed reading this book. It does cover the theme of loss at the end, so I could see the value in using this as a teaching tool as well in relation to the concept of loss or death. The storyline was wonderful and the book features beautiful images. I chose this book based on the cover, and in this instance judging a book by the cover really worked out.