Nothing Ever Happens at the South Pole

PreS-Gr 2—Originally intended to be the follow-up to the Berenstains's The Big Honey Hunt (Random, 1962), this manuscript was completed by Jan and their son Mike after Stan's death. Following the pattern of the early books, the rhymed text features an endearing character reminiscent of Papa Bear at his most clueless. Having received a blank journal in the mail, a penguin sets off on a walk near his South Pole igloo, determined to have adventures to write about. As he wanders, he dreams of stopping bad guys with a giant snowball, jumping on monsters, facing danger on an ice floe, and escaping whales; he is oblivious to the fact that all these things are happening around him. Finally, the penguin returns home, hoping to find something interesting to write about tomorrow. The repetitive text is fine for beginning readers, but some of the verses do not scan properly. Humorous pictures make up for any faults in the text, as long as readers are willing to get past the fact that polar bears, Arctic wolves, and walruses do not live at the South Pole. Like the lucky chicken in Pat Hutchins's Rosie's Walk (Macmillan, 1968), this peripatetic penguin manages to escape becoming a meal. Children will enjoy finding the lurking predators and predicting what will happen next.—Martha Simpson, Stratford Library Association, CT