Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey

My friend Annie (from Juneau) bought this book for Andrew some time ago. Since the move, we've been reading BFS and Brrrr each night. In BFS, Little Sal and her mother go out picking blueberries on Blueberry Hill. At the same time, Little Bear and his mother go to BH to eat blueberries to pack on some pounds before hibernating all winter. The little ones get tired and lose track of their mothers, who are diligently traversing the bushes snatching up plump, ripe berries ... Sal's mother to take home to can, Little Bear's mother eating them. Eventually, the little ones end up finding the wrong mother, then things get straightened out. Little Bear returns home down one side of BH (with his mother) and Little Sal and her mother go down the other side of BH to go home to can berries.

I'm a little bit confused about the message. On the one hand, I'm left to think that eating/picking blueberries is hazardous to your health, as you may become so engrossed in the activity that you will lose sight of your child and he/she may end up confronted by a bear, be it a Little Bear or the mother of Little Bear. That's not good.

On the other hand, everything worked out in the end. So, perhaps the moral of the story is that if you devote your time and energy to picking blueberries, at the end of the day, everything will be just fine.

Anyone want to drop their two cents in the comment box ... kuplink, kuplank, kuplunk!!!