cover image The Bear Essentials: Everything Today's Hard-Pressed Parent Needs to Know about Bringing Up Happy, Healthy Kids

The Bear Essentials: Everything Today's Hard-Pressed Parent Needs to Know about Bringing Up Happy, Healthy Kids

Stan Berenstain, Jan Berenstain. Random House Books for Young Readers, $10.95 (144pp) ISBN 978-0-375-83266-6

Two books suggest ways that parents can approach challenging topics with their children. The team behind the Berenstain Bears present The Bear Essentials: Everything Today's Hard-Pressed Parent Needs to Know About Bringing Up Happy, Healthy Kids by Stan and Jan Berenstain. Chapters about peer pressure, sex, TV watching and even finances open with an excerpt from the bestselling books, followed by simple rules of thumb by the wise authors. Full-color spot illustrations of Brother and Sister Bear balance with sepia-toned scenes of human families working through challenges. .