I’m Sticking with You

Bear and Squirrel stick together through the good and the bad. Or so Bear thinks. Bear vows to be there for Squirrel. “Even if sometimes it goes a bit wrong.” And does it ever. Bear sincerely tells young readers that he and Squirrel fit, “Like peas in a pod.” But the illustrations tell a different tale than the text. Squirrel scowls after Bear cracks his favorite cup. Bear squishes Squirrel whenever they share a space. Do they fit? Squirrel believes, “There’s bearly any room.” Squirrel reaches his breaking point in an igloo and finally tells bear, “I think I need to be on my own.”

I’m Sticking with You, written by Smriti Prasadam-Halls and illustrated by Steven Small, is a funny and poignant story about the ups and downs of friendship. In fantastic rhyme, Bear’s sentiment is sweet and also painful as readers realize it is one-sided. Small’s illustrations convey Squirrel’s frustrations and regret in an hilarious manner. Squirrel’s dark night of the soul quite literally arrives on a black background as he chases Bear down and admits, “Me without you? It just doesn’t work. Me without you? I’d just go berserk.” Because who is Squirrel kidding, where would he be without Bear?