Raymond Antrobus became the first ever poet to be awarded the Rathbone Folio Prize for best work of literature in any genre, and in January 2021 he was awarded an MBE for his services to literature in 2021.His adult poetry collection The Perseverence was published to great acclaim, earning him the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award and the Ted Hughes Award and was a Sunday Times & The Guardian Poetry Book of the Year Awards. His latest poetry collection, All the Names Given, was shortlisted for the TS Eliot Prize. Can Bears Ski? is his first picture book. Find him online at raymondantrobus.com, on Instagram as @raymond_antrobus and Twitter as @RaymondAntrobus Polly Dunbar is the author-illustrator of Red, Red, Red, A Lion Is a Lion, Arthur’s Dreamboat and the bestselling picture book Penguin, winner of numerous awards including the Book Trust Early Years Award and the Red House Children's Book of the Year. She is also the illustrator of My Dad’s a Birdman, written by David Almond, and Shoe Baby and Pat-a-Cake Baby, both written by her mother, Joyce Dunbar. Her collection of titles beginning with Hello Tilly was made into an animations series, Tilly and Friends, as seen on Cbeebies. She is the co-founder of Long Nose Puppets, a children’s theatre company. Polly lives in Beccles, Suffolk. Find her online at pollydunbar.com and on Twitter and Instagram as @PollyDunbar.
This multi-layered, skilfully woven story provides a brilliant insight into how children make sense of their experience when they don't have the words to describe it. * The Scotsman * The detail of how Little Bear can feel the vibration of Dad's feet on the floor rather than hear his voice in the morning, and how he can feel the crunch of the snow under his feet when he walks to school, as well as the experience of visiting an audiologist, bring an authenticity to the depiction of being deaf or hard of hearing in childhood alongside a lovely story told in a relatable child voice. * BookTrust * This is a powerful and beautifully created book. * Able * The story is direct and straight-forward without ignoring either the best times or the challenging times for those who are lip reading and/or have hearing loss. Colourful full-page illustrations will capture the attention of both children and their families. This is a book which should certainly have a place in every primary school for children, teachers, parents and staff. * The School Librarian * Drawing on Antrobus' childhood experience with undiagnosed deafness, this new paperback edition comes with a BSL alphabet, as well as Dunbar's cuddly illustrations. * Guardian *