Humphrey's Bear - Jan Wahl
This story by Jan Wahl about a little boy and his beloved bear features William Joyce's beautiful distinctive art - Humphrey looks very much like another Joyce protagonist (George Shrinks). As a stand alone this book is fine - a boy and his nighttime dream adventures, but when I compare it with other work illustrated *and* authored by Joyce this one suffers in the comparison. Joyce is a master at imaginative, evocative, and poignant picture book story lines. I can't recommend both The Leaf Men and Bently & egg enough! This story, while sweet, feels abrupt and unoriginal. It really doesn't fare well when compared with other picture books with a similar 'imaginary nighttime adventure' premise - Where the Wild Things Are and In the Night Kitchen both by Maurice Sendak, My Pony by Susan Jeffers, and My Dinosaur by Mark Alan Weatherby. So, I recommend giving this one a pass and trying any of the other books mentioned within this review. If you're a die-hard Joyce fan (like myself) then this one might be worth it for the illustrations alone.