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My boys, A&W are super fans of the children's authors Thomas Weck and Peter Weck.  They first became hooked on The Megasaurus and then How Back-Back Got His Name and both titles are bedtime staples.  When The Cave Monster was coming out and I received an early review copy I became the coolest mom "evah (hey, we ARE Mainers!)".  Here is the scoop on what I read the boys at bedtime tonight (and last night....and the night before that...and that...and that....)....

Oh no! L. Joe Bean, Lima Bear's cousin, has been captured by the Cave Monster. Lima Bear and his friends must enter the Black Cave to try to save L. Joe Bean.

Venturing into a new place, especially if it is potentially scary--like a dark basement or somewhere unknown--is not something most children would choose to do, and certainly not alone. That is the situation the animal friends face in The Cave Monster.

All 4-8 year olds will love following along as Whistle-Toe (the rabbit), Maskamal (the raccoon), Back-Back (the opossum), and Lima Bear (a tiny bean-shaped bear) come up with a plan to save Lima Bear's cousin. Bringing along the thing each one thinks might be the most useful--a tiny sword, a rustic bow & arrow, a red flag and a canteen of water--the band of friends tentatively approaches the scary cave.

Will their ideas go according to plan? Will they get to L. Joe Bean in time? Will they save themselves?

The take-away message of this book is friends, individually afraid, find courage when acting together.



I have done reviews for both The Megasaurus and How Back-Back Got His Name and both times I was dubious about the story lines....bear beans and animals losing their backs just seemed SO out there to me.  Both times I was so far off the mark on my gut instinct.  Thomas and Peter Weck KNOW what kids like and what they relate to.  This time when I got my hands on The Cave Monster I did not bat an eye at the little bean bear cousins and a scary monster being overtaken by animals with questionable weapons.  I knew the kids would love it and they did.  It was just scary enough to get them excited (without being so scary they were too scared to sleep!) about the book and the animals in the stories are now familiar heroes to them.  Seeing the animals work together helps drive home the message we as parents are always trying to portray to our kiddos...teamwork is the way to go.  As with all the books in the Lima Bear series, the last pages are dedicated to "Extend the Learning" and "Activities" pages which allow you to take the book to other levels with thought provoking questions and help with vocabulary.

Thomas Weck and Peter Weck know what children like.  They also have a way of portraying important life lessons through child friendly characters.  The Cave Monster is a new favorite and the Lima Bear series as a whole is one I highly recommend.  We are already anxiously awaiting book number four!  You can pick up The Cave Monster today on Amazon...

I am so pleased to tell you that TWO lucky RBM readers will win a copy of The Cave Monster.  Thank you so much to the sponsor and here is how to enter...