Never Take a Bear to School by Mark Sperring and Britta Teckentrup (Orchard Books)

It's quite a way off but come September lots of little ones will be going up to "Big School" for the first time...
There have been so many brilliant children's books dealing with the sensitive subject of what it feels like to start a new school with new friends, new teachers and lots of new things to do.

In "Never Take a Bear to School" Mark and Britta have come up with a novel and amusing take on 'back to school' books. A little boy isn't sure about his first day.

Having his best friend bear along seems like a great idea at the time.

The only problem is that bears and schools really don't mix.

OMG! Don't let the bear drive the bus!!

The rhymes are tons of fun (though Charlotte took exception to a few of them...! She is uber-picky when it comes to pitch-perfect rhyming though, to be fair).

Panic on the playground. Well, you'd panic if a bear was running towards you, wouldn't you?

Britta's artwork is glorious though. Simple but hugely effective.

All the fun things to do with your new friends at school.

The book gloriously conveys its core message very effectively with plenty of bounce, and loads of fun.

Sorry bear, you'll have to wait till I get home for fun and frolics. School is for humans only I'm afraid!

"Never Take a Bear to School" by Mark Sperring and Britta Teckentrup is out now, published by Orchard Books (kindly supplied for review).