To celebrate the release of The Big Dreaming by Michael Rosen and Daniel Egnéus tomorrow, Thursday 26th October 2023, I am posting a review of the book.

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Title: The Big Dreaming

Written by: Michael Rosen

Illustrated by: Daniel Egnéus

Published by: Bloomsbury Children’s Books

This book is stunning. The repeated four lined phrase/poem is easy to remember and children will love to join in, making the book an interactive experience. I can instantly see why this adorable picture book has been described as an ‘instant classic’. I must say I whole-heartedly agree.

It portrays a young bear cub who has his own worries about the forthcoming hibernation and perseveres to find a solution to his problem. Little Bear visits some of the other woodland creatures to find a dream that will last the whole of ‘the big sleep’. Each of the dreams have an uplifting conclusion and important message to convey. In this way The Big Dreaming is indeed ‘a story of hope and perseverance’.

Daniel Egnéus uses beautiful autumnal colours, which subtly change into winter setting the scene for the bears’ big winter sleep and they delicately change again when the bears awaken in the spring. The exquisite illustrations successfully reveals how we measure our lives in seasons and associate them with colours and feelings.

This is most definitely an enchanting picture book children will want to hear read again and again. It leaves the reader with a feeling of calm. It would make a great Christmas present for any young child.

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This book was previously reviewed on NetGalley and Goodreads and would like to thank Bloomsbury Children’s Books and NetGalley for organising a digital copy of this book for me. Thank you.

I have interviewed Michael Rosen about the research he does for his writing in 2009, when he was children’s laureate. to read highlights from this interview take a look at: An interview with… Michael Rosen.

I have had the pleasure of reviewing another book illustrated by Daniel Egnéus. You can read the review here: Book Review – Moth.