A Ball for Daisy
Ages 2 to 5Recommended among wordless picture books for sharing with children.
Recommended by What Do We Do All Day?
Ages 3 to 5Horrible Bear!
Ages 3 to 5About this age guidance
Kirkus: 3–5; Publishers Weekly: 3–6; School Library Journal: PreS-Gr 2
The age tag follows Kirkus review. Other sources may suggest different ages. This is audience guidance, not an independent reading level.
A father and teacher reviews it after a bedtime read. His son saw some of his own behavior in the girl, and liked that she says sorry well.
A sleeping bear accidentally crushes a girl’s kite, and she storms off calling him horrible. Bear, furious at being blamed, sets out to get back at her. Meanwhile she accidentally tears her own stuffed animal’s ear and sees that Bear did not mean it either. When Bear arrives she says sorry, and the anger leaves him.
Recommended by Father Reading Every Day
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What children see in the story
The girl who blamed Bear for an accident takes it back with an apology. Bear, who came to get back at her, lets the anger go once she says sorry.
Why it’s on these shelves
- Making things right
- The girl shouts “Horrible Bear!” and stomps home when Bear crushes her kite by accident. After she tears her own stuffed animal’s ear by mistake, she tells Bear she is sorry.
- Forgiveness
- Bear is furious at being called horrible and sets off to the girl’s house with a plan to get back at her. When she says sorry, the horrible goes out of Bear.
Why pick it up?
The girl apologizes, Bear lets go of his anger, and the quarrel ends.
A note for parents
Closest to the line in this tranche because anger and blame occupy most of the story. I kept it as Pass with note: three low flags, none rewarded, and a clear apology and forgiveness ending. David may want to look at this one. Brief asked about the broken kite: the kite is broken by Bear, accidentally. The girl’s own accident (tearing her stuffed animal’s ear) is what turns her. Only the girl’s apology is confirmed by the sources I opened; I could not confirm that Bear apologizes too. SLJ says the quick forgiveness is rare in real life, but fine for a picture book. PW praises it as forgiveness without moralizing.
Where this recommendation comes from
Father Reading Every Day
A father and teacher reviews it after a bedtime read. His son saw some of his own behavior in the girl, and liked that she says sorry well.
Read FRED (Father Reading Every Day)’s recommendationSources and review status
We have checked source descriptions and drafted the value mapping. We have not personally reviewed the full book. The value labels, situation assignments, and parent notes remain provisional.
Publisher or literacy resource · Original recommendation
Our explanation of the value fit is separate from the original reviewer’s judgment. Their inclusion here does not imply an endorsement of Stories for Growing.
Another good example
Browse more values
A Day’s Work
Ages 5 to 8Recommended in the parent blog’s honesty selections; the page has a mismatched heading above the correct plot.
Recommended by Happily Ever Elephants