I discovered author and illustrator Bill Peet this winter when Tanya Arnold of Biblioguides suggested that I look at his books. It has been a few years since I was collecting and researching picture books, and somehow I had never heard of him before. I have read three of his books and have short reviews for each. As I read others, I will update this list. As my reviews will indicate, I think Kermit the Hermitis a gem worth searching out. I think The Ant and the Elephant has a certain charm. And I think Big Bad Bruce has some things that are worth noting. One thing I like about Bill Peet’s books is that they are in print and readily accessible. It is likely that your public library or private lending library may have some of his books available.
Of the Peet books I have read, this is my least favorite.
As with The Ant and the Elephant, this one is told in modern picture book prose. Bruce, a big brown bear, is a troublemaker. He loves nothing more than to throw big boulders and stones down the hills and at the rabbits and quail and anything else that will be scared of him. He laughs at the misery of others. The animals in the forest have no recourse against Bruce.
One day Bruce throws a boulder into a blueberry patch while a witch and her cat pick blueberries. The witch loses her temper and goes home to make a potion to teach the bear a lesson: she bakes him a blueberry pie that is filled with ingredients that will make him shrink to the size of a squirrel.
When Bruce has eaten the pie and awakens from his nap, he finds that the animals of the forest are now bigger than he is, and they get even with him. Ultimately, the witch rescues Bruce before an owl can eat him. She brings Bruce home with her and turns him into a pet. Instead of returning him to his normal size, however, the witch keeps him just as he is. And now, he does the same things he used to do, just on a smaller scale. He runs around the tall grasses and throws pebbles at the grasshoppers.
There are things about the story that are cute, but overall, I didn’t care for it. This one I am discarding from my library.