Review: HELP, I’M BEING EATEN BY A BEAR! by Neil Sharpson

Publishers Weekly: A hapless traveler, an unhelpful safety pamphlet, and one very persistent bear collide in this adroitly constructed comedy from collaborators Sharpson and Santat (Don’t Trust Fish). Upon arriving at an airport information desk in Alaska, the dark-haired, tan-skinned protagonist—sporting bright orange cargo pants and narrating in a confiding voice—receives a welcome pamphlet called WHAT TO DO IF YOU MEET A BEAR. Moments later, the visitor has a chance run-in with a huge and hungry ursine figure. When the pamphlet fails to mention that “you should never EVER run from a bear,” a chase escalates at length over mountains and rivers, up elevators and down escalators, across alligators—“he even followed me online.” Digitally finished pencil-and-watercolor art balances poker-faced characterizations and matter-of-fact narration with pure Keystone Cops slapstick, resulting in readily ratcheting mayhem. Finally—but only partially—eaten, the narrator is saved when hibernation suddenly kicks in. Months later, the human protagonist collaborates with the former pursuer on a new pamphlet-turned-picture-book, a meta-joke that doubles as the origin story for this extended raucous yarn. Ages 3–7. (Nov.)