BIG KICKS by Bob Kolar

BIG KICKS by Bob Kolar
This story is about a bear who enjoys being by himself and likes jazz music, peanut-butter and banana sandwiches and stamp collecting. He gets asked by the local town soccer team to join them for a game. The other members of the team thought they inevitably win their match because of having a large bear playing on their team. But as it turns out, the large bear is not that good at soccer. I thought this was a good story that shows the readers that just because someone looks like they might be good at something, doesn't mean that he/she actually are. It's a good chance to talk about how important it is not to assume certain things about others and to actually find out what they're really like by asking questions and being interested in them. After the soccer game the other players go over to Biggie Bear's place and found out what he really enjoys about life-jazz music, sandwiches and stamp collecting. I thought the story had a sweet ending when it showed that Biggie Bear still decided to be a special part of the soccer team-the biggest cheering fan in the stands! I also enjoyed the bright and colorful illustrations throughout the book. It was also creative to make the inside cover look like stamps from various scenes from the book.