Book Review: Mother Bruce by Ryan T. Higgins

Mother Bruce by Ryan T. Higgins is a picture book about a bear that loves cooking good food and being left alone. But when his hard-boiled goose eggs turn out to be real, live goslings, he starts to lose his appetite. And even worse, the goslings are convinced he's their mother. Bruce tries to get the geese to go south, but he can't seem to rid himself of his new companions. What's a bear to do?

Mother Bruce is a book about a bear reluctantly taking on the role as mother to a group of baby geese. I loved the humor of the book, and the illustrations of the grumpy bear warming up to the little birds, against his will, and caring for them were simply delightful. I found the images of him feeding and wearing the goslings to be both sweet and funny. His attempts to get the grown geese to fly, and his eventual solution, made me smile. 

Mother Bruce might not deliver a big moral, but as I have know people like the bear (and might just be one myself) I have to admit that there is some truth behind the fun of the book. While some might bluster about caring for others or being put out by an unexpected turn of events, they are often the very people that will step up and do what is right- even when it might not be the path they had planned.