The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving: The True Meaning of Christmas
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2023-01-04 04:21:41
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Jan Berenstain
- ISBN：0310712556
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Join Brother and Sister Bear at the Christmas Eve pageant as they witness the very first Christmas， and make an important discovery about giving and receiving， a valuable lesson at Christmas and year around。 Young readers will learn the true meaning of Christmas in this addition to The Berenstain Bears Living Lights™ series。
The Berenstain Bears explore the value of generosity and gratitude in The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving。 Children will discover ways to implement traditional values and share God’s goodness in Zonderkidz The Berenstain Bears Living Lights™ series of books。
The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving:
Sparks conversations about the joy of giving to others？
Encourages age appropriate discussions about sharing and developing an attitude of gratitude？
Perfect for back-to-school reading， summer reading， birthday gifts， and holiday？gift-giving
Perfect for early reader ages 4-8， reading out loud at home or in a classroom
The Berenstain Bears Living Lights™ series:
Features the hand-drawn artwork of the Berenstain family
Continues in the much-loved footsteps of Stan and Jan Berenstain
Is part of one of the bestselling children’s book series ever created， with more than 250 unique books published and nearly 300 million books sold to date？
Look for additional inspirational children’s picture books in The Berenstain Bears Living Lights™ series。
The Berenstain Bears explore the value of generosity and gratitude in The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving。 Children will discover ways to implement traditional values and share God’s goodness in Zonderkidz The Berenstain Bears Living Lights™ series of books。
The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving:
Sparks conversations about the joy of giving to others？
Encourages age appropriate discussions about sharing and developing an attitude of gratitude？
Perfect for back-to-school reading， summer reading， birthday gifts， and holiday？gift-giving
Perfect for early reader ages 4-8， reading out loud at home or in a classroom
The Berenstain Bears Living Lights™ series:
Features the hand-drawn artwork of the Berenstain family
Continues in the much-loved footsteps of Stan and Jan Berenstain
Is part of one of the bestselling children’s book series ever created， with more than 250 unique books published and nearly 300 million books sold to date？
Look for additional inspirational children’s picture books in The Berenstain Bears Living Lights™ series。
Reviews
Flannery
，
There are many problems with this book。1。 Compared to the original Christmas book， about meeting Santa， it was incredibly disappointing。 The Santa book was about a young cubs worries about meeting Santa and about a family of bears on Christmas。 The cubs get excited about the different gifts showed on TV， and they buy their parents presents。 This one is a preachy books about the joy of giving。 Really。 Meet Santa Bear mentions that the cubs felt the joy of giving when they saw their parents open t There are many problems with this book。1。 Compared to the original Christmas book， about meeting Santa， it was incredibly disappointing。 The Santa book was about a young cubs worries about meeting Santa and about a family of bears on Christmas。 The cubs get excited about the different gifts showed on TV， and they buy their parents presents。 This one is a preachy books about the joy of giving。 Really。 Meet Santa Bear mentions that the cubs felt the joy of giving when they saw their parents open the gifts that they gave them。 This book is completely about it， and it also makes kids getting caught up in the hustle and bustle of Christmas seem completely unjustifiable。2。 The part about the cubs buying gifts for each other。 They have ten dollars， and they're hoping for a little leftover， so the gifts they get for each other cost only a few dollars each。 When Mama and Papa discuss it afterwards， it sounds like they had ten dollars to spend on each other， and they spent two or three dollars and kept the rest for themselves。 No， they had ten dollars to spend， period。 They still have to get gifts for Mama， Papa， and Honey。 So， lets say they spent three dollars on each other。 They can't do that for everyone， because that's out of their ten dollar budget。 So， really， the cubs spent the most on each other than they did with anyone else。3。 Except that they don't。 The greedy cubs only wind up buying a gift for each other。 So， maybe Mama and Papa were right。 They have two parents and another sibling to get gifts for， and they just don't。 And then once they discover the joy of giving （basically the best thing ever， apparently）， they don't go out to buy their baby sister a present。 No， they give all of it to charity。 All of it。 I mean， giving the leftover money you have from Christmas presents to charity is great， but not when you neglected to get gifts for three family members。 It doesn't make much since， especially since the cubs were more than eager to spend all their money on Christmas gifts for Mama and Papa last year。4。 Honey outright steals Sister's last quarter to donate it。 HOW is that okay？5。 Sister and Brother are very excited to be a camel。 They describe it as a very important role。 What？6。 Mary rode a horse instead of a donkey in the play。 Recently religion has been at the center of all the Berenstain Bears book。 They don't just teach morals such as are in the Bible， now they reference the actual verses from the scriptures。 It kind of creeps me out that bears are worshipping Jesus， but okay。 If there's a religious element in each book， than so be it。 But at least get the facts right。This is the second worst Berenstain Bears book there is。 。。。more
Elisabeth
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This was adorable and loved the illustrations！ The storyline was adorable and we all could make sure we care and share with others more！ Thanks to Edelweiss for the ARC！
Samantha
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Brother and Sister are reminded of the original Christmas Story and learn the true meaning of Christmas and why gifts are "given" on Christmas。 Brother and Sister are reminded of the original Christmas Story and learn the true meaning of Christmas and why gifts are "given" on Christmas。 。。。more
Theresa
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The Berenstain children learn through the story of Jesus's birth that the real joy of Christmas is in giving and not recieving。 The Berenstain children learn through the story of Jesus's birth that the real joy of Christmas is in giving and not recieving。 。。。more
Ginger
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A decent book for kids， not bad but not my favorite book for teaching the real meaning of Christmas。 Still a good message taught though。
Benjamin Page
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This is a sweet and simple story to prepare your young child early for the mindset of generosity and gratefulness。
Mckensi
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The overall message of the 'joy of giving' in this book is wonderful。 This book is another great holiday one for children to read or be read to during that time。 The only thing that is a little confusing is the religion/traditional Christmas values that the Berenstain Bears follow。 However， when I step back and realize this is for a younger audience I think dabbing into that aspect may be over-complicating it。 I do like the story and the message it teaches on the importance of giving during the The overall message of the 'joy of giving' in this book is wonderful。 This book is another great holiday one for children to read or be read to during that time。 The only thing that is a little confusing is the religion/traditional Christmas values that the Berenstain Bears follow。 However， when I step back and realize this is for a younger audience I think dabbing into that aspect may be over-complicating it。 I do like the story and the message it teaches on the importance of giving during the holidays。 。。。more
Cole E
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A nice message， but I think there is a bit of a plot hole regarding Bear Country。 What’s the population there？ How are they able to have a marching band playing on Christmas morning？ Would read again。 Probably will twice tomorrow。
Piper
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The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving by Jan Berenstain is a cute book that teaches us the valuable lesson of giving to others。 Brother Bear and Sister Bear learn are humbled in this book it is a good and cute read。Lexile: 700AR:4。1Six traits: Ideas
Ellista Smith
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This beautiful picture book highlights the joy of giving during an activity play at the church。 ATOS: 3。9Lex: AD700LTrait: Ideas
Sandy
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The message of giving vs， getting was nice。 I also liked the summary of traditional Christmas pageant （which works for our Christian-based， non-church attending family to further provide explanations）。 But， overall the story was pretty 'meh'。 I think it is interesting for the kid audience since they get to see characters they know from other books （or TV） but as an adult reading this book to a child， there was no real reward in the story。 The message of giving vs， getting was nice。 I also liked the summary of traditional Christmas pageant （which works for our Christian-based， non-church attending family to further provide explanations）。 But， overall the story was pretty 'meh'。 I think it is interesting for the kid audience since they get to see characters they know from other books （or TV） but as an adult reading this book to a child， there was no real reward in the story。 。。。more
Lindsay
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The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving is a really good book to add to your Advent calendar。 Are you struggling with your child or children with the meaning of giving rather than receiving？ Well， this one does the job。This book is a favorite of mine not cause it to deal with Christmas or the meaning of giving。 I grew up with The Berenstain Bears series。 I still love them。 I love the meaning behind the book。 It is better to give than to receive。This tells a story through Brother and Sister Be The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving is a really good book to add to your Advent calendar。 Are you struggling with your child or children with the meaning of giving rather than receiving？ Well， this one does the job。This book is a favorite of mine not cause it to deal with Christmas or the meaning of giving。 I grew up with The Berenstain Bears series。 I still love them。 I love the meaning behind the book。 It is better to give than to receive。This tells a story through Brother and Sister Bear's eyes。 This book and many in the series teaches a valuable lesson for children。 I love that。 The pictures are done well。 There something that changes the cubs。 This book is good to have on your child's bookshelves。 。。。more
Charul Palmer-Patel
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The Joy of Giving message falls flat when it's mixed up in a message of "Brother and Sister are so emotionally caught up in the birth of Christ that they decide giving is important"。 There are so many other picture books （Franklin， Arthur， etc） that does this giving message that's actually meaningful and poignant for a 4 to 8 year-old The Joy of Giving message falls flat when it's mixed up in a message of "Brother and Sister are so emotionally caught up in the birth of Christ that they decide giving is important"。 There are so many other picture books （Franklin， Arthur， etc） that does this giving message that's actually meaningful and poignant for a 4 to 8 year-old 。。。more
Ktmattison
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Better than I rememberedI had issues with this series as a kid， and am still not a fan of them。 So I was pleasantly surprised to find this story to be very Biblically strong， and the family got along， and had good moral lessons。
Donna Thomas
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The Berenstain Bears illustrate my reason for gift giving in their always classic style of story telling simplicity。 Every December I try to purchase a new Christmas book for the grandkids。 The Joy of Giving was a wonderful choice this year。 （And a lot less expensive than my usual book purchase！）
Darise Ortiz
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So many memories！ I used to read this book so much when I was a little girl。 This book is about a family of teddy bears where they are excited about giving something to someone else。 This family of bears has a message to be thankful for what you got in life。 Every single day we should be thankful。 Nit all the time everyone has the same luck。
Linda Klinedinst
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The Berenstain Bears and the Joy Of Giving by Jan Berenstain I love this book。。。。this would be a very good book for children to read who can read。 It talks about how to Give than to Receive and it is a good book to learn that。 Children of all ages who are able to read should read this book。 I highly recommend this book。This is a Library E Book from my County Library and I read this on Overdrive。 I give this Book 5/5 Stars。Happy Reading :）
Stacy
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Brother Bear and Sister Bear begin the Christmas season by spending very little on each other's gifts。 In the end， though， after they take part in their church's nativity play， the cubs give away the rest of their spending money to those in need。 Brother Bear and Sister Bear begin the Christmas season by spending very little on each other's gifts。 In the end， though， after they take part in their church's nativity play， the cubs give away the rest of their spending money to those in need。 。。。more
Candra Hodge
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A lesson in a storyBerenstain bears have always been about a family of bears and the lessons the little ones learn。 This allows people to easily entertain their kids while teaching them lessons。
Nancy
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Lovely book teaching the bears the joy of giving。
PottWab Regional Library
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O
Rosa Cline
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This is the first Berenstain Bears book I've read from their "Living Lights A Faith Story" series。 I loved it！ If you are a Christian and or believe in Jesus then you will love these books！ In this one the cubs are in the Christmas Pageant at their church， before that they go shopping for 'others' but they each are thinking of themselves and go the 'cheapest' they could on their gifts so they'd have left over money。 But after being in the pageant they both realized the greatest gift of all， and This is the first Berenstain Bears book I've read from their "Living Lights A Faith Story" series。 I loved it！ If you are a Christian and or believe in Jesus then you will love these books！ In this one the cubs are in the Christmas Pageant at their church， before that they go shopping for 'others' but they each are thinking of themselves and go the 'cheapest' they could on their gifts so they'd have left over money。 But after being in the pageant they both realized the greatest gift of all， and why it's so important and special to give more than you get。 In the end they take their money they were saving for themselves and gives it to charity。 Learning a lesson of giving。 great story！ 。。。more
Mara
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Wonderful book。 Would make a great Christmas present。
Sarah Fortier
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This book is the worst。 For one thing， the Berenstains were Jewish。 Another， the Bear Bears don't talk about religion at all until freaking Mike Berenstain （also Jewish） decides to make the Bear Bears super conservative Christians。 The Bible passages scattered throughout are really the icing on a really shit cake。 I hate every time my kid makes me read a new bear bear book。 The worst。 This book is the worst。 For one thing， the Berenstains were Jewish。 Another， the Bear Bears don't talk about religion at all until freaking Mike Berenstain （also Jewish） decides to make the Bear Bears super conservative Christians。 The Bible passages scattered throughout are really the icing on a really shit cake。 I hate every time my kid makes me read a new bear bear book。 The worst。 。。。more
Matthew S。 Zielinski
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The boys loved the story of the pageant and the importance of giving。 The questions at the end of the book were helpful in starting a discussion about gift giving。
Rell
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Kinda long and draw out。 I don’t remember seeing that this was based on the Bible story of Jesus but it was。。。。 really not about the joy of giving but I see Where they were trying to go
Brianna
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The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving is a story geared towards students ranging from Pre-K to Third grade。 The story takes place around the holiday season。 The cubs were excited for Christmas and all the gifts to come。 In the end， Sister and Brother from their school play learn an important lesson of giving rather than receiving。 Throughout the book， each page has text and an illustration that accurately represents the passages。 The images are colorful and full of life。 The emotions reflec The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving is a story geared towards students ranging from Pre-K to Third grade。 The story takes place around the holiday season。 The cubs were excited for Christmas and all the gifts to come。 In the end， Sister and Brother from their school play learn an important lesson of giving rather than receiving。 Throughout the book， each page has text and an illustration that accurately represents the passages。 The images are colorful and full of life。 The emotions reflected in each character’s face are priceless。 Overall， this book is a wonderful Christmas story。 It highlights the values of sharing and being kind。 It also teaches the joy of giving。 However， this book may not be of interest to all students in the classroom if they do not celebrate this holiday。 If I was to use this book I would read a variety of holiday books that occur at this same time of the year to be inclusive and teach students about a diverse group of traditions celebrated by many different people。 。。。more
Kristina
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I think this is a great book for kids。 my 3 kids really enjoyed reading this book。 I would recommend this book to others。
Heather
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Captures the Christmas spirit。 Shopping， decorating， charity money drive。The first wise man had a loose tooth， and was hard to understand。 "A thtar！ A thtar！ I thee a thtar！"That's funny the camel has eye holes in them for them to see。 I've never known a costume like that to have them， especially because you can see their eyes in it！The neighborhood was pretty as the cubs walked home。 I love seeing all the lights on the houses， and how the houses are shaped differently。 This must be modern bear Captures the Christmas spirit。 Shopping， decorating， charity money drive。The first wise man had a loose tooth， and was hard to understand。 "A thtar！ A thtar！ I thee a thtar！"That's funny the camel has eye holes in them for them to see。 I've never known a costume like that to have them， especially because you can see their eyes in it！The neighborhood was pretty as the cubs walked home。 I love seeing all the lights on the houses， and how the houses are shaped differently。 This must be modern bear country， because I've never seen ones like this！They always do a play on words， where they put Bear into everything。 Like a Bearbie doll。It's weird seeing another cub in the picture。 That's cute that the girl playing Mary is sittin on the costume horse， and somebody's feet are below it。 Idk how a costume horse would be sturdy enough to sit on。 OMG now I realize why her feet looked faint， they're painted on the horse's side and she's standing in it！！The bears dressed as sheep are cute。Sammy's loose tooth had come out backstage so he was able to say his lines clearly。In the scene where everyone vows before the 'tender baby' I didn't think tender baby was a good line。 Also the tender baby was nowhere to be seen。 The cradle was empty of all but hay。 'Peeking out of the camel costume， tears came it sister's and brother's eyes。 It seemed they had never understood the joy of giving until that moment。 All the gifts of all the Christmas of all the years went back to those first gifts given to the tiny baby long ago。'I'm surprised they were so touched by the wise men giving Jesus the gifts。'Everyone felt the true spirit of Christmas had been with them that night。' It's nice everyone was affected by the play like that。That's sweet they ran to their presents for each other first。"From one end of the camel to the other。" Haha！It's sweet that they gave each other "big bear hugs。"& they thought of the money that had left over。I like the Chapel in the Woods。 It looks pretty in the sun and snow。They decide to give their money to the bears singing Christmas carol as for the needy。I read the part where honey have a quarter to the needy before the part where sister gave her the quarter because it was on the left side of the page， even though it was on the bottom。After she gives the quarter the bears say Merry Christmas to them， but they hadn't when sister and brother gave them all their money。I thought it could have ended on a better note。 This would be a good book for kids to learn values。 It was just ok。 。。。more
Andrea
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