Boy Bear #[3]

The cover of this third Boy Bear adventure by Gregory Rogers bursts with kinetic energy — a wide-eyed boy in a red cape tumbles forward across old Dutch cobblestones, arms outstretched as a shaggy brown dog dashes ahead of him, all set against a charming row of stepped-gable buildings straight out of seventeenth-century Holland. Rogers's watercolor linework balances genuine warmth with delightful slapstick, and the lurking figure of a bully on a bicycle at the upper left keeps the tension cheerfully alive. A wonderful 2012 entry in the series for anyone who loves wordless visual storytelling with real heart.