They had two sons, Leo (born 1948) and Mike (born 1951). He was survived by Jan, four children, and legions of fans whose childhoods he had enriched. Educational Book & Media Association is a 501(c)6 non-profit organization. Some of these awards include the Ludington Award from the Educational Paperback Association, the Drexel Citation from Drexel University, and several Philadelphia Children's Literary Roundtable honors. Literary legends Stan and Jan Berenstain take readers for a ride in this classic Beginner Book edited by Dr. Seuss. I could relate to this because I had to move from Missouri to Colorado and I was very sad. Details Their autobiographical adventures are recounted in "Down a Sunny Dirt Road." Since their first Berenstain Bear book, "The Big Honey Hunt," more than . This was my favorite book I picked this week for a couple of reasons. Together they wrote more than three hundred books. In 1962, Berenstain and his wife published their first children's book The Big Honey Hunt. [3] For their first children's book, they chose to cast bears as the main characters, primarily because "bears are furry and appealing. Not to mention the dreadful fashion choices, especially the mother bear's mob cap and dowdy blue polka-dot dress. "[14] The Washington Post's Alexandra Petri wrote that the books were "timeless, timely, and kind-hearted, like all the best literature", and acknowledged the Post's 1989 piece by saying, "This is one of the times the kids have the right idea and Charles Krauthammer does not. A planned Berenstain Bears feature film adaptation was announced in 2009 by Walden Media and director Shawn Levy, whose company 21 Laps would produce the film. New York: Random House, 1983. [79], In August 2012, the publishers of the series faced controversy regarding the fast food restaurant Chick-fil-A's plan to distribute titles in the series as part of a kids' meal promotion, with gay rights advocates urging the publishers to pull out of the promotion, due to the Chick-fil-A founder's controversial statements regarding same-sex marriage. Details The quest for picnic perfection will delight readers in this classic Beginner Book edited by Dr. Seuss. Did they kill it and eat it? [1][10][11] He asked questions such as "What kind of pipe tobacco does Papa Bear smoke?" [3][4][5] After being separated during World War II, during which Stan served in the Army as a medical illustrator and Janice worked as a drafter for the United States Army Corps of Engineers and an aircraft riveter, they were reunited and married in 1946. They produced together the magazine cartoon feature It's All in the Family from 1956 to 1989 in McCall's and Good Housekeeping. The book is surprisingly frank and honest about the process: "When Sister Bear learns that the reason Mama Bear's lap is getting smaller is because a new cub is growing in her womb, she is curious about how it will get out. [2][10][23][24], In a 1989 editorial titled "Drown the Berenstain Bears", The Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer lamented the popularity of the books, writing that "it is not just the smugness and complacency of the stories that is so irritating", but the bears themselves, particularly "the post-feminist Papa Bear, the Alan Alda of grizzlies, a wimp so passive and fumbling he makes Dagwood Bumstead look like Batman". Ah, yes, the Berenstain books. They based the stories on their own children and their grandchildren. A wonderful series by the Berenstain couple, and their son now. . Janice Grant was born in 1923 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The Berenstain Bears website. 5 November 2018. The Berenstains have two children, Michael and Leo, who especially enjoyed the works of Theodore Geisel, commonly known as Dr. Seuss. This helps us begin having a more honest conversation about how each of us has a role to prevent the abuse and neglect of our nation's children. Our team is hard at work standardizing and improving our database content. The series was produced by the Canadian company Nelvana and consisted of 40 30-minute episodes adapted from the books. "Family values is what we're all about. Commons Attribution 4.0 license. Stan and Jan Berenstain met at the Philadelphia Museum School of Art in 1941, and they soon found success with cartoons in the Saturday Review of Literature. In the end, it was the best decision and I have had so many more opportunities in Colorado than I would have had in Missouri. 2003. There have been television shows based on the Berenstain Bears books, as well as CD-ROMs and videos. It gives children the chance to think on their own and make their own choices for behaviors that carry over into their adult lives. Commons Attribution 4.0 license. It had really good illustrations, great characters and a good storyline. Said PCA America President and CEO Jim Hmurovich: "This is a great example of a socially conscious and child-focused business taking a stand on an issue that has great consequences for all of us. "[5][6] The second bear book, The Bike Lesson, appeared in 1964, featuring the names Stan and Jan Berenstain instead of Stanley and Janice; Geisel had changed the credit without consulting them. [2], Stanley Berenstain and Janice Grant met in 1941, on their first day of drawing class at the Philadelphia Museum School of Industrial Art, where they formed an immediate bond. They have received multiple Philadelphia Library Children's Reading Round Table honor book awards. It was about a family of bears, who later became known as the "Berenstain Bears". We travel extensively. This book can help students that are moving away and going to attend another school. The Berenstains continued to publish their children's books, including chapter books they co-produce with sons Michael, an illustrator, and Leo, a writer. In 1951, the couple published Berenstains' Baby Book, which dealt with the issues of pregnancy and child-rearing. The emotional apex of the series. The Berenstain Bears and the Ghost of the Forest. P.O. 12 Oct. 2003. These are wonderful books that can help kids get through tough situations in their lives. [5] In 2002, the couple released a memoir of their career titled Down A Sunny Dirt Road. Brother is sad to say goodbye to his old friends but he can look forward to a big new treehouse and lots of cubs to play with. "[4][11] The couple also pointed out, in response to criticism of the characterization of Papa and Mama Bear, that the characters were heavily inspired by Stan and Jan Berenstain themselves. Lastly, I loved the vocabulary in the book, it had a lot of imagery. "[6] According to The Washington Post's Paul Farhi, "The action usually starts when the kids face a problem. The Berenstains may be two of the most commercially successful authors of all time. 1989 Ludington Award Winner Stan and Jan Berenstain were both born in 1923 in Philadelphia. For example, "dripped and trickled." [65] The exhibition visited eight other museums in the United States and Canada before returning to Lied Discovery Children's Museum in 2010. Although containing practical advice, the book used humor and reminded parents not to take every situation too seriously. Their first published children's book was called The Big Honey Hunt . When Mama goes to the market, Brother and Sister play soccer in the house . Several of their books have been made into animated film features and released on home video. 2003. Read them slightly out of order too, as well as being a huge fan of the TV series, so the books pre-move and pre-Sister Bear were always a bit strange. He edited several books in the Berenstain Bears series and created a lasting franchise including many more books, television series, toys, and stage productions. Jan attended Radnor High School in Radnor, Pennsylvania. The Berenstains were married for 59 years until Stan's death from cancer on November 26, 2005. To coincide with the 40th anniversary celebration of the first Berenstain Bears book, Random House published the couples autobiography, Down a Sunny Dirt Road. About The Project. She continued to write after her husband's death in 2005, but the main focus shifted from younger readers to slightly older readersages 8 to 11. Books in this series have dealt with issues such as fighting, spending time away from home, and the importance of recycling. Get help and learn more about the design. It is about the Bear family moving from the mountains to the valley and Brother Bear is worried at first because the cave is all he has ever known. If you need assistance, please contact us. Ratings Friends & Following Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book! The Berenstains are the award-winning authors of over 200Berenstain Bears books. They liked each other right away, and found out that the both enjoyed the same kinds of books, plays, music and art. Written by Paul Farhi, who had previously rebuked the Berenstain Bears as the most popular example of a lamentable and misguided "self-help" genre aimed at children,[2] the 2005 piece revived his earlier sentiments: The larger questions about the popularity of the Berenstain Bears are more troubling: Is this what we really want from children's books in the first place, a world filled with scares and neuroses and problems to be toughed out and solved? "About Stan and Jan Berenstain." It was a really good book. They would go on to publish another two books on parenting, How to Teach Your Children About Sex Without Making a Complete Fool of Yourself and Have a Baby, My Wife Just Had a Cigar!. I think that's worth discussing as these books are read w/a child, at least. Of their books, 35 are in the Publishers Weekly top 250 titles of all time, and 15 are in the top 100 children's paperbacks. There are problems, but they're the kind of typical family problems everyone goes through. She was a writer and producer, known for The Berenstain Bears (1985), The Berenstain Bears and The Berenstain Bears' Camping Adventure (1993). The book described the family moving, and how sad brother bear was. . Their first published children's book was called The Big Honey Hunt . The Pennsylvania State University I really enjoyed reading Berenstain Bears books. [5][10], The Berenstain Bears series had sold over 240 million copies by 2003. The Big Honey Hunt, published in 1962, was their first book for children. The Berenstain Bears Bookshop $24,978,189.16 raised for local bookstores The Berenstain Bears Stan and Jan Berenstain published the first Berenstain Bears book in 1962, and the series has gone on to capture the hearts and minds of children across generations and across the globe. About the Berenstains. The Berenstains live in Bucks County, Pa. - The Berenstains, creators of the Berenstain Bears series of children s books, met on their first day of class at the Philadelphia College of Art in 1941. University Libraries, Creative In adulthood, I still like some things about these books, other things not so much.