Something’s Wrong! A Bear, a Hare, and Some Underwear

Something’s Wrong! A Bear, a Hare, and Some Underwear is an interesting book to say the least. The front and back covers are spot on. With one look, my kids were begging to read the book. They were eager to know why the bear was wearing underwear, and they had a huge laugh over the bear’s tail sticking out on the backside. Needless to say, we had extremely high hopes based off the cover. We’ve read the book a few times because the concept of this book is great – we want to get to the bottom of why everyone is acting so weird around Jeff (the bear) – but, unfortunately, the delivery of the book is awkward… every time.

Jeff starts his day fairly normally but forgets to take off the underwear gift that his grandma sent him before leaving his house that day. Jeff encounters a myriad of other forest animals who are inexplicably staring at him with wide eyes. Out of a sense of unease, Jeff over-shares (creating lots of one-sided dialogue) and makes each meeting socially uncomfortable. Jeff’s friend Anders saves the day (more on that later) and shows him some friendly support.

Now, I get that part of this awkwardness we, as readers, feel is the exact point! Jeff is feeling awkward, and, by extension, so do we. But this unease with the text feels a bit more than that. Jory John’s long solo dialogue by Jeff each time is tough to get through with kids waiting for the punch line. By the time it arrives, they’ve lost the interest to laugh about it. Furthermore, the text is repetitive with only slight variation each time Jeff speaks. Bottom line: there is just too much text. I do think that the social awkwardness could have been conveyed without so much solo dialogue.

Something’s Wrong! has many things going for it. The production value of the book is feels exquisite. There’s tactile lettering with the title, thick paper, a unique dust jacket from the hardcover, and beautiful floral end papers. Similarly, Erin Kraan’s woodcut print illustrations are fantastic; she uses earthy colours: brown, dark turquoise, and a variety of greens to create an assortment of humourous characters with large round eyes. The illustrations carry this book and are a major contributor to the heightened expectations for it.

Finally, to discuss the power of the protagonist: Jeff, the bear, does not solve his own problem. Anders, his hare friend, does. Perhaps it’s more realistic that we don’t always solve our own problems, but often the strength of a children’s book comes from the demonstration that the protagonist has enough personal understanding to save the day for themselves. While there’s a good message embedded in this outcome, that we can count on our friends, it almost felt forced in order to get the last (truly funny) line in the book: “Good friends are like good underwear, Jeff. They’re reliable and they’re supportive.” And again, who gets credit for this last zing? Anders, of course!

Will children enjoy Something’s Wrong!? Mostly. Is it everything it could have been? Maybe not. Would I recommend this for a read-aloud? No way. This book was a tough one to assess, and, in its hardcover format, it’s expensive. So ultimately, whether it’s worth adding to your home, school, or library collection might come down to a manner of taste. I just hope I’ve given you a clear enough window to make that decision for yourself.