Deep In Bear Country – A Berenstain Bearcast
Let's talk about every single Berenstain Bears book, shall we?
Hey everyone! Mitzi is here to talk about “The Berenstain Bears Phenom in the Family!” What’s a phenom? You’re a phenom! I mean, are you? Why is Papa such a jerk? What about Brother Bear’s feelings? Who knows?!
Here it is. The Berenstain Bears and the Great Ant Attack!
Brandi Brown is back on the show to take us through the frightening world of late ’90s internettery! That’s right, the cubs are on the Information Superhighway and are about to get “Lost In Cyberspace!”
Two and a half years ago, Mark Sweeney and I talked about “The Showdown at Chainsaw Gap!” Well, we’re back to talk about it again! Only now it’s call “Nature Rescue” and it’s missing, like, one line. Still a good talk tho!
This week, I’m joined by Erin Ayers – one half of the Over the Table Top podcast – to discuss a tale of fraud and dinosaurs. It’s “The Berenstain Bears and the G-Rex Bones!” How far will Ralph go to secure a million dollars? Pretty far! Will he sell out his own personal values and ruin the reputation of a fine upstanding bear like Actual Factual? Sure! Will any of this plot make a lick of sense? Nope!
This week, Jamie Tyler, author of the “Cowabloga” Ninja Turtles blog, is BACK to talk about the most convoluted, frustrating, fascinating and satisfyingly unsatisfying Big Chapter Book I’ve read in a while: “The Berenstain Bears and the Perfect Crime (Almost)!” Yes, get that parenthetical in there; it’s important. Jamie and I work ourselves up to a fever pitch as nothing makes sense, adds up or resolves in any way resembling logical or even dramatically resonant. It’s amazing. And I love it.
Boy oh boy! Milton Chubb! Who is Milton Chubb, you ask? Only the strangest cub introduced in these here books. He’s introduced TWICE actually, in “Too Much Teasing” and in “The Love Match.” Two different formats that tell essentially the same story but in wildly different ways and for wildly different reasons.
To commemorate this event, I’ve brought John McCoy – host of the Sophomore Lit podcast and my co-host on Klickitcast: A Beverly Cleary Podcast – onto the show to try and suss out the point of these two books. Does the first one teach us anything about teasing? Why are Too-Tall and his gang so bad at it? Does Milton have parents, really? Do pigs have armpits? Who knows?! Not us!
This week, I’m joined by the delightful Drew Stewart to rock out to “The Berenstain Bears Go Platinum!” It’s the gripping tale of Stan and Jan Berenstain really wanting to stick it to the music of today!
Gena Radcliffe – one half of the Kill By Kill Podcast duo – joins me to talk about the decidedly NON-SCARY “The Berenstain Bears and the Haunted Hayride!” There’s no haunting but there IS a hayride although it is very short and they don’t go into a lot of details about it. Still . . . there it is.
Also, you can find Gena’s writing on a ton of different subjects here and I strongly suggest that you do!
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This week, I’m joined by Kacie Galyon to talk about one of the most surprisingly enjoyable books I’ve read so far in the Big Chapter Book series, ‘The Berenstain Bears and the Bermuda Triangle.” Kacie and I are taken somewhat aback by the mature handling of themes in this book, the twists in the plot and the revelation about Too-Tall’s age! Also, Bermuda . . . is that a good first name?
It’s ME again! I’m back at my desk and I’m chatting about things like MALLS and STONE-WASHED JEANS and BEARY MANILOW and NOT MURDER THIS TIME.
This week, I’m joined by Sammi Campbell from Excessively Diverted to talk about this . . . weird . . . book. I mean, it’s great, but it’s weird. There’s ghosts but no ghosts! Bags under eyes and then no bags under eyes! Pajamas and no pajamas! What more do you want?!
Mr. Mark Sweeney RETURNS! And this time he’s got OPINIONS about BIRDS and CHAINSAWS!
Jon Biegen and Nick Wood slide on over from Stranger Still to talk about children successfully managing a television station. That’s . . . that’s really all that happens in this book, so – so, lesson learned, I guess.
Ollie, my teen and co-host of It’s Del Toro Time! – A Guillermo del Toro Podcast, joins me this week to talk “The Berenstain Bears and the School Scandal Sheet!” In which we discuss the terrible things the cubs accuse a teacher of and also divide the cubs into their Hogwarts Houses. IT’s kind of a discussion that goes all over the place. Also, we talk about the importance of owning up to your terrible terrible mistakes how if you’re a cub, you face no consequences for those terrible terrible mistakes.
Meghan Griffin of Judging Book Covers and Fableulous Retellings joins me to talk dress codes, law enforcement and a Berenstain Bears book that gets way more political than we were anticipating!
Joel Torres of the Please Don’t Send Me Into Outer Space podcast joins me to talk about DRUGS! And DRUG ZONES! And BACKWOODS DRUG DISTRIBUTION? It’s a wild weird but pretty nicely done book.
Today, I am joined by writer, musician, educator and Ninja Turtles Blogger Jamie Tyler to talk about wheelchairs, ableism and the way we approach people living with disabilities. Also, should you call a person in a wheelchair “Wheels?” Come on, people.
Because I felt guilty – here’s a talk about The Big Chapter Books!
This week, I am joined by Jessie Cooper of Alphabet Flight, Turn to Page and Random Sampling as we discuss our first BIG CHAPTER BOOK “The New Girl In Town!” Listeners, this book has got everything. History, romance, racism, war, moaning. Everything.