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To that end, Papa and Small Bear follow around a bee as it flies from tree to tree. At each tree, Papa declares that he is sure there is honey inside of it, but instead variously encounters an owl, a porcupine, and a family of skunks. When they do finally find a tree full of honey, it is protected by a swarm of bees. The bees chase them down to the river, where they jump in to avoid them. After the bees leave and the bears exit the water, Papa gives up and readily buys the honey from the store, as Mama suggested before.
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159:(aka Ted Geisel) books, the Berenstains decided to create books for young children. For their first book, they decided to use bears as the main characters because they were widely popular and were easy to draw. According to their other son Mike Berenstain, Stan and Jan based their family of bear characters partly on themselves and their two sons. For the relationship between the father and son, in particular, they used the 1931 film
180:, about a small bear who tries to avoid a spanking from his parents by suggesting a list of other punishments, to their first meeting with Geisel. Geisel praised the basic premise of the book but criticized many aspects of its execution. He became their first editor, and they spent the next two years revising their book to suit Geisel's rigorous standards.
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At the beginning of the book, around the
Berenstain Bears' table, Mama discovers that they are out of honey and tells Papa to go get some more. He agrees and takes Small Bear along with him. However, he ignores Mama's advice to go to the store to buy the honey and tries to collect wild honey instead.
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Initially, after its release, Stan and Jan proposed creating a series based around their bear characters to be published by
Beginner Books, but Seuss encouraged them to do something different. They began work on a book about a penguin, which they worked on for a few months. In the meantime, however,
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The book was originally published with the authors' full names, Stanley and Janice, printed on the cover, but Seuss shortened their names to Stan and Jan in later editions, saying, "That's what you call each other. And that's what I call you. Besides, it fits on one line". The pair used the moniker
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bears: Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Small Bear, who was later renamed
Brother Bear when Sister Bear arrived in 1974. The Berenstains described the characters thusly: "A bluff, overenthusiastic Papa Bear who wore bib overalls and a plaid shirt and... a wise Mama Bear who wore a blue dress with white
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In 2002, in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the book's original publication, the
Berenstains published an edition with an updated cover. In 2012, another update of the cover added a "50th-anniversary" logo but left the cover art unchanged from the 2002 edition.
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books, the bears have larger and more pronounced ears and noses, thicker eyebrows, and lighter fur than their later redesigns. The plaid shirt Papa wears under his overalls is red and white instead of yellow and black.
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books, focuses primarily on the relationship between father and son while Mama Bear plays only a secondary role. Later books began to focus more on other relationships, especially after the introduction of Sister Bear.
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features Papa Bear ignoring the advice of the wise Mama Bear, getting into trouble, and finally relenting. The book, like other early
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bears: Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Small Bear (later known in the series as
Brother Bear following the introduction of Sister Bear).
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and it had been selling well. Seuss revisited their idea of turning the book into a series, which spawned
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The book's visuals also differ from later books in the series, particularly in character design. In
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throughout the 1940s and 1950s. By the early 1960s, partly influenced by their son Leo's love for
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The reissued cover, showing the updated character design of Papa Bear and
Brother Bear.
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Black, Irma
Simonton (November 11, 1962). "Beginners: Easy Reading".
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co-founded and edited by Dr. Seuss. The book was well-received, with
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383:"Mike Berenstain talks about the Berenstain Bears' 50th anniversary"
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praising its "good, simple vocabulary" and "natural repetition".
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283:"Stan and Jan Berenstain" throughout the rest of their career.
429:"Stan Berenstain, Co-Creator of Those Fuzzy Bears, Dies at 82"
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polka dots... and a bright, lively little cub". Like other
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was published, with their work appearing in magazines like
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347:"The Big Honey Hunt by Stan and Jan Berenstain"
16:1962 children's book by Stan and Jan Berenstain
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482:"CHILDREN'S BOOKS; Pursued by Bears"
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208:Like later books in the series,
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784:Children's books about families
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321:"Why Bears? The Big Honey Hunt"
135:, a husband and wife team from
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253:was published in 1962 by
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769:American picture books
246:Publication and legacy
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190:Down a Sunny Dirt Road
182:Freddy Bear's Spanking
178:Freddy Bear's Spanking
759:1962 children's books
451:"The Bear Beginnings"
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703:The Berenstain Bears
688:The Berenstain Bears
567:. pp. 215–216.
351:Penguin Random House
520:Shattuck, Kathryn.
434:, 30 November 2005.
411:Mehren, Elizabeth.
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20:The Big Honey Hunt
635:The Big Honey Hunt
526:The New York Times
509:"Bear Necessities"
487:The New York Times
432:The New York Times
418:, 2 February 1995.
387:The Celebrity Cafe
273:The Big Honey Hunt
264:The New York Times
251:The Big Honey Hunt
235:The Big Honey Hunt
223:The Big Honey Hunt
210:The Big Honey Hunt
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186:The Big Honey Hunt
141:The Big Honey Hunt
86:The Big Honey Hunt
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449:Berenstain, Jan.
427:Martin, Douglas.
416:Los Angeles Times
152:Good Housekeeping
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357:February 2,
331:February 2,
753:Categories
728:Characters
645:Television
307:References
128:Background
162:The Champ
157:Dr. Seuss
109:Dr. Seuss
58:Hardcover
47:Published
710:episodes
695:episodes
721:Related
706:(2002)
691:(1985)
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493:30 May
462:30 May
397:29 May
37:Author
626:Books
63:Pages
569:ISBN
495:2012
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399:2012
359:2016
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149:and
119:Plot
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