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Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

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Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
Front cover, designed by Carle
AuthorBill Martin Jr.
IllustratorEric Carle
Cover artistEric Carle
LanguageEnglish
SubjectColors, animals
GenreChildren's literature
PublisherDoubleday & Company (later published by Henry Holt and Company)
Publication date1967
Publication placeUnited States
Published in English
1967
Media typeHardcover
Preceded byN/A 
Followed byPolar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? 

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? is a children's picture book published in 1967 by Henry Holt and Company, Inc.[1] Written by Bill Martin Jr. and illustrated by Eric Carle, the book is designed to help toddlers associate colors and meanings with animals. The book has been widely praised by parents and teachers and placed on several recognition lists.[2] In 2010, the book was briefly banned from Texas’ third grade curriculum due to a confusion between author Bill Martin Jr. and philosopher Bill Martin, author of Ethical Marxism: The Categorical Imperative of Liberation (Creative Marxism).[3]

Background

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Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? is one of over 300 children's books written by Bill Martin Jr.[4] Martin came across an ad created by Eric Carle for Chlor-Trimeton featuring a lobster collaged from tissue paper, and their collaboration began shortly after.[4][5]

Martin and Carle write poetic books they wished they had access to as students.[6] They use simple and rhythmic language to help students transition from reading to writing.[6] Martin begins by establishing a rhythm that is then repeated throughout the book.[7] American author and illustrator Steven Kellogg has said that this exposes “children to the ‘music of language.'"[7] Martin believes the rhythms resonates with children, even if they do not understand the content.[8]

Summary

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The narrator asks various animals and people what they see. Their response is an observation of another animal or person, which again prompts the initial question, "What Do You See?" This process creates a rhythmic pattern that is consistent throughout the book. The 1984 edition begins with a brown bear, then features a red bird, a yellow duck, a blue horse, a green frog, a purple cat, a white dog, a black sheep, a goldfish, a teacher (who was published in some of the other editions as a mother), and lastly, children, who repeat all the animals.

Publication history

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Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? was published in 1967 by Doubleday and Company.[9] By 2003, over 8 million hardcover copies had been sold, and the book translated into eight languages.[9]

There are four editions of Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? with differing endings.[10] Carle explained that variations in text between editions (mostly on the last page) were due to Martin, and that Carle made new illustrations to go with the changes.[10] The 1967 first edition was created for the educational market only, and the final pages of the book feature a teacher. Some later trade editions replace the teacher with a mother. The 1970 edition includes a grey mouse between the blue horse and the green frog, and a pink elephant between the purple cat and the white dog. The 1984 UK edition substitutes a monkey for the teacher.[10]

The 1992 edition restored Martin's original text with the teacher at the end, while Carle created new pictures based on the originals, intended to better represent the colors of the original.[11][12]

Missouri Governor John Ashcroft and First Lady Barbara Bush with a "Parents as Teachers" group at the Greater St. Louis Ferguson-Florissant School District in October 1991. Bush (in a rocking chair) is reading Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? to the children.

Reception

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The book was listed as one of the "Top 100 Picture Books" of all time in a 2012 poll by School Library Journal.[13] As of 2013, it ranked 21st on a Goodreads list of "Best Children's Books."[14] The book has been praised by many parents and school teachers. Martin and Carle's collaborations included three sequels: Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?, Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See?, and Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What Do You See?.[9]

Texas State Board of Education banning

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In 2010, the Texas State Board of Education removed Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See from the statewide social studies curriculum because board members mistook the author for an unrelated philosopher, Bill Martin, who had recently published the 2008 book Ethical Marxism: The Categorical Imperative of Liberation. Texas Board of Education member Pat Hardy cited the latter's "very strong critiques of capitalism and the American System." Bill Martin Jr. had died in 2004.[15][16] Hardy later admitted to doing little to no research herself into Ethical Marxism, instead "trusting the research of another board member" who, it was reported, had not read it either.[15] The banning raised concerns about the board's ability to update the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills and other statewide standards.[15][16]

References

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  1. ↑ List of Books by Eric Carle, archived from the original on 2009-05-25, retrieved 2009-07-19
  2. ↑ Lodge, S (2003). "A Bear of a Project for Martin & Carle". Publishers Weekly. 250: 20, 21, 27.
  3. ↑ Troop, D (2010). "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, Why were you Banned?". Chronicle of Higher Education. A6.
  4. 1 2 Brodie, C.S. (2004). "What Have You Written? Bill Martin Jr". School Library Media Activities Monthly. 20: 45–47.
  5. ↑ "Timeline – The Eric + Barbara Carle Foundation". carlefoundation.org. Retrieved 2026-08-13.
  6. 1 2 McCoy, L.J. (1991). "Interview with a Kansas Author: Bill Martin, Jr". Kansas Journal of Reading. 7: 65–72.
  7. 1 2 Baker, Isabel (2009). "The Bill Martin Jr Big Book of Poetry". YC Young Children. 64.
  8. ↑ Elliot, I (1997). "300-plus Books and Counting: Bill Martin Jr". Teaching Pre K-8. 27.
  9. 1 2 3 Lodge, S. (2003). "A Bear of a Project For Martin & Carle". Publishers Weekly. 250: 20–21, 27.
  10. 1 2 3 Carle, Eric (2010). "Brown Bear Tells a Story". Eric Carle's Blog. Archived from the original on 2011-11-04. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  11. ↑ "Publisher description for Library of Congress control number 91029115". catdir.loc.gov. Retrieved 2025-07-10.
  12. ↑ "Artistic Process | Carle Museum". carlemuseum.org. Retrieved 2026-08-13.
  13. ↑ Bird, Elizabeth (July 6, 2012). "Top 100 Picture Books Poll Results". School Library Journal "A Fuse #8 Production" blog. Archived from the original on August 2, 2013. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Best Children's Books". Goodreads. 2008. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  15. 1 2 3 Shurley, A.T. (2010). "Confusion bars children's author from curriculum, TX". Associated Press News Service.
  16. 1 2 "Name confusion gets kid's author banned from Texas curriculum". Dallas Morning News. January 25, 2010. Archived from the original on February 16, 2011. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
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