Somebody and the three bears

Somebody and the Three Blairs by Marilyn Tolhurst

May 7, 2019

One morning the Blairs decided to go out for a walk in the park. While they were gone, Somebody visited their home. Somebody sniffed, and sat, and played, and drank, and slept, and escaped. When the Blairs returned they could tell Somebody had paid them a visit. They went a search to figure out who had visited them.

Somebody and the Three Blairs is a cute, urban twist on Goldilocks and the Three Bears. It’s a fun book that made me giggle and laugh as I read it. It is readable at a low 2nd grade level. The repetitive dialogue in combination with the illustrations provide structure and support for struggling readers. The text is rich with dialogue, making it a great example to share with students when teaching dialogue in writing. As it is based on a known fairy tale, it is predictable and a great example of narrative writing.

Plot Summary:
-The fractured literature story of Somebody and the Three Blairs by Marilyn Tolhurst is a fractured tale that comes from the original tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. In this story, the Three Blairs decide to go out for a walk after breakfast one day. Once they leave for breakfast the “somebody,” which is a bear, comes into their house. The bear walks through their house eating their food, sitting on their chairs, using their bathroom, and finding a bed to sleep in until everything is “just right.” The Three Blairs finally return to their home, and are scared about how they found their house destroyed and broken into. They want to call the police and the fire department, but Baby Blair tells the bear to “come again.”

Literary Merit:
-The literary merit that is most noteworthy for this fractured story is the style. On each page, the words are separated into three patterns. “This is too…, this is too…, but this, this is just right.” This is a pattern that Marilyn Tolhurst carries out through the main part of the story. This pattern is important to the story because that is what will keep children interested and intrigued while reading the story.

Reader Response/Classroom Connection:
-As a class, we would complete the Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the similarities and differences of both stories while considering the literary elements. Later during the unit on traditional literature, students will visit literacy centers.

fractured-literature traditional-literature

(KidLit ED204 category: fairy tale)
"Somebody and the Three Blairs" is a version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, with a fun twist. Instead of a little girl going into the Bears' home, it's a bear going into the Blairs' home! This version was written by Marilyn Tolhurst and illustrated by Simone Abel. In this story, there's a little bit of a different take on the store, such as one of the cereals is too noisy, and then Somebody goes to look for something to play with and something to drink. (Including from the toilet, maybe?!) Overall, a very cute version that children are sure to love. The illustrations are simple but illustrate the story very nicely.

kidlit-ed204

Enjoyed and loved this story! "Somebody and The Three Blairs" is a great fractured book of "Goldilocks and The Thee Bears." Instead of having Goldilocks come across the house in the woods, a small bear comes into the Blairs house. I loved baby Blairs comments each time Mr. and Mrs. Blair found something else that "somebody" had gotten into. I love that it's a more updated version of the story, it takes place in a modern home and it makes more sense that its a bear coming into the house exploring rather than Goldilocks going into the bears house. The illustrations are on a sort of double spread layout there, but they're cut out and some pages include a motif. It's a great story to help learn about similarities and differences. Great twist of the original "Goldilocks and The Three Bears" story, would definitely recommend, it's a super cute plot.

childerns-lit

Asho

1,716 reviews8 followers

I wasn't impressed with this adaptation of Goldilocks and the three bears. A bear named Somebody goes into the Blair family's house and uses all of their things while they are out. It's a cute concept, but the execution is poor. The things Somebody messes up don't have the useful relationship that they do in the original story. For instance, we don't have a bed that is "too hard," "too soft," and "just right." Instead of opposites the book presents things like "too noisy" and "too cold" together, so I feel like the opposite lesson goes out the window. I didn't find the book particularly funny or clever (although a child might, I suppose), an the illustrations were dull, too. I don't think I'll be checking this one out again.

read-but-do-not-own sebastian-s-books

This story is the opposite of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. However, I did not like this story as much as the other one. I had higher expectations for it, and this one was a little boring. The pictures are nice though, and it would be a good book to read after reading Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

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Cheryl

8,924 reviews391 followers

(reread) "This pond [toilet] is too small. This stream [sink with tap opened] is just right."

I like the creative idea of the bear being named "Somebody" and I thought it was a bit clever. However I found the ending a bit weird and it feels like the little kid just suddenly befriended this bear that intruded in their house and demolished it. The bear just went from snoozing in one bed, to having the cops called on it, then leaving the house.

animal fairytale family

Jeremy

101 reviews1 follower

A spin on the classic tale of The Three Bears. In this version, the Blairs leave their home to have a bear invade their home and use their items. It is a simple twist in the story that still follows the same expected pattern.

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I read Somebody and the Three Blairs. I would read this story to compare this story with the traditional Goldilocks and the Three Bears story. It has different characters and a few different things happen throughout.

free-choice-5

LOVE this picture book. It's a fun take on Goldilocks and the Three Bears. My children loved it as children and I'm using it in my classroom to explore fractured fairy tales.

picture-books

This book was okay. A retelling, not necessarily a super unique take.

Susan

1,590 reviews9 followers

The adults at storytime found this more amusing than the kids. I read a version of "The Three Bears" before reading this because I've found that many preschool kids aren't familiar with folk tales.

picture-books picture-books-funny

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. As a kid, I loved to read Goldilocks and the Three Bears, so when I saw this version, I was interested. I think it’s a good book for students who have already read Goldilocks and would be able to make connections to the original version. I also think that this book would lend itself well to teach comparison. Another aspect of this book that I really liked was how the bear’s name was “Somebody”. This is something that I didn’t catch the first time, but I wonder if kids would notice. I would rate this book 4 out of five stars. I like how it offers up lessons to be taught, and how it takes a classic book but changes it slightly to create a new and fun version.

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Plot summary and personal response:
This is a fractured fairytale based on goldilocks and the three bears, but the twist is that it’s a human house with a bear as the ‘somebody’ breaking in.
I really liked the humor in this story. Particularly Baby Blair’s comments and the interpretations of human things by the bear.

Literary Merit:
Setting: Unlike traditional tales, which take place ‘long ago’ and or ‘far away’, this fractured tale takes place in a fairly modern home with conveniences like a fridge, indoor plumbing, and a home phone line.
Characters: True to traditional literature, and the tale that is the basis for this story, the characters are not well developed and are one dimensional.

Genre Considerations:
This tale is a fractured fairytale because it takes a traditional fairytale, and changes it to make it more humorous. Switching the roles of the bears and humans, and moving the setting to a modern home, the author could add a lot of humor to how a bear might interpret various aspects of a human home. For example, what might be considered ‘games’ in the kitchen, what different water sources might be compared to, and what might work as a bed.

Reader Response / Classroom Connections:
1. Readers’ theater.
2. Continue the story to make up what might happen if the bear 'came back to play tomorrow'.

animal-characters genre-fractured-fairytale genre-traditional-literature

Main Characters: The Blair Family, Somebody (the bear)
Point of View: 3rd Person
Setting: The Blair Family's house
Plot: A new twist on Goldilocks and the Three Bears, see Goldilocks replaced by a bear named Somebody and the three bears are replaced by the Blair Family. One day Mr. and Mrs. Blair and the baby decide to go to the park to feed the ducks. While they are out Somebody enter their home and trys out all of their things in search of supreme comfort while making a mess of the house. The family returns to their overturned home to find a bear ( Somebody) sleeping in the baby's bed.
Main Ideas:Sequencing

I love the updated version of this classic tale. It makes much more sense that a bear would enter a human family's home and make a mess than a human child entering a bear's home. I think children will appreciate this updated version and be entertained by the twists in the story. The book can be used to teach students about perspective when comparing both versions of the story and even encourage them to write their own Goldilocks story. Also, bear or human, homes should be locked upon leaving!

Becky B

7,283 reviews91 followers

A bear wanders into the Blairs' house while they are out for a walk. He helps himself to a snack, tries to find a nice seat, tries to find a game, looks for a source of water, and then for a place to nap. When the Blairs return from their walk, they are in for quite a surprise.

I like the twist on the traditional Goldilocks and the Three Bears in this book. The bear is the intruder, and the bear approaches many of the human items as a wild bear would. Food is a toy, shelves full of towels may look like a bed, and the sources of water...well, they aren't in the fridge. I also enjoyed Baby Blair's response to the intruder. Instead of the usual frightened response, he's thrilled with the teddy bear come to visit. Baby Blair's speech is somewhat babyish and written in vernacular/slang, so beginning readers may struggling reading his lines. For the most part the reading level is fairly easy and this is a quick fractured fairy tale read.

animal-picture-book fairy-tales humorous-picture-books

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The orientation of this book is portrait. However, it does not specifically zoom in on one person in an image, but portrait orientation was a good choice because of the layout of the pictures. All of the pages were plain white, except for the color in the images, making those specific items really stand out. The text placement becomes routine throughout the book, and you can basically guess where it will be placed on the next pages. What I found interesting was that there were no borders around any of the images. Although most childrens books are fictional, a border is common, but there were none in this book. The relationship between the text and the images was symmetrical, the images showed exactly what the text said, but maybe with a bit more detail.

This is a cute version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. In this version, it is a family of human beings called the Blairs and they go for a walk in the park. A little bear come in and tries their food, explores their water, sits in their chairs, and sleeps in their beds. The people come home and look for the intruder. When they see him, the bear escapes through a drainpipe. The illustrations are great. I would use it will preschool and early elementary grades. When I used it with my preschool class, they loved when I used a baby voice for the little Blair.

picture-books traditional-lit

Somebody is actually a bear who decides to go into the Blairs's home after they have gone out. He eats their food, sits in their chairs, floods their house, and sleeps in the bed. When the Blairs come home to find the mess, they realize there is a bear in their home. Baby Blair is very excited about this and asks him to come back tomorrow to play.

Somebody and the Three Blairs can be used in the classroom to show the playful side to a story and show that a tale can be twisted. Also, it can be used again to show the children the importance of respecting people's property.

fantasy fiction picture-book

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I found this adaptation of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, in which the characters are reversed and a bear enters a human house, to be mildly clever, but ultimately fell short of my expectations. The illustrations and text were obvious and repetitive and not changed enough from the original story for me to be very taken with the book. I might be a fun and appropriate book for young children, but i believe there is also better out there.

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AR Quiz No. 7157 EN Fiction
Accelerated Reader Quiz Information IL: LG - BL: 2.2 - AR Pts: 0.5
Accelerated Reader Quiz Type Information AR Quiz Types: RP, VP

This is a great twist on the three bears. The Blair family went for a walk to feed the ducks. While they were away somebody came to visit their home. In this twist it is a little bear that comes and destroys their home and escapes out the window when they come home. It would be great for lessons an making connections and predictions.

a32 ar-2

Based off of the well known "Goldilocks and the Three Bears", this tale is a fun one to read to a class. There are many voices, even a baby, that you can impersonate to add a great affect to the book. The kids can also make connections between the original story and this spin-off and you could do a compare and contrast activity with this as well. Comparing will just be able to show kids the differences between the versions and be able to teach a lesson through the book.

Jen

Author 5 books20 followers

Somebody is a bear who pulls a Goldilocks, making a mess in the home of the three Blairs. Read the comments of Baby Blair in a funny voice and the kids to whom you're reading will giggle like maniacs. My three-year-old goddaughter loved it so much that she brought it to school and incited the rest of her class to laugh along with her.

booksfornephewsandnieces

Mary

85 reviews3 followers

This is "Goldilocks and the 3 Bears" in reverse and improves upon the feeling tone of the original. Baby Blair is cute and has the best lines; while Somebody (the baby bear) is a typical toddler, leaving a string of messy disasters in his wake. This is a very short and simple read-aloud book that appeals to 3-4 year olds.

Somebody and the Three Blairs is a reversed twist on the classic Goldilocks and the Three Bears. This would be a great story to read after the original, the the children could compare and contrast the two stories. Though it's an older story, children are so like it, and but themselves in the Blair's position!

animals classic-tale-retold great-for-lessons

Somebody and the Three Blairs is a unique version of the classic that most of us grew up reading, Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Although the setting and plot is pretty much the same, this story has its own splash of creativity. Children will probably enjoy seeing this version but my guess is that most will prefer the original.

twist-stories

This book is fantastic! Somebody and the Three Blairs gives students a whole new perspective on the story "Goldilocks and the Three Bears." I use this story in my classroom to compare simliar stories -- pulling out elements that are alike, and those that are different. My students always find this book funny and interesting because typically they have never heard it before.

fairy-tales-fables funny illustrations

"The Three Bears" | Fairy Tales and Other Traditional Stories | Robert Southey

Southey, R. (0). "The Three Bears". Fairy Tales and Other Traditional Stories (Lit2Go Edition). Retrieved February 07, 2023, from https://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/68/fairy-tales-and-other-traditional-stories/5105/the-three-bears/

Southey, Robert. ""The Three Bears"." Fairy Tales and Other Traditional Stories. Lit2Go Edition. 0. Web. . February 07, 2023.

Robert Southey, ""The Three Bears"," Fairy Tales and Other Traditional Stories, Lit2Go Edition, (0), accessed February 07, 2023, https://etc. usf.edu/lit2go/68/fairy-tales-and-other-traditional-stories/5105/the-three-bears/.

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In a far-off country there was once a little girl who was called Silver-hair, because her curly hair shone brightly. She was a sad romp, and so restless that she could not be kept quiet at home, but must needs run out and away, without leave.

One day she started off into a wood to gather wild flowers, and into the fields to chase butterflies. She ran here and she ran there, and went so far, at last, that she found herself in a lonely place, where she saw a snug little house, in which three bears lived; but they were not then at home.

The door was ajar, and Silver-hair pushed it open and found the place to be quite empty, so she made up her mind to go in boldly, and look all about the place, little thinking what sort of people lived there.

Now the three bears had gone out to walk a little before this. They were the Big Bear, and the Middle-sized Bear, and the Little Bear; but they had left their porridge on the table to cool. So when Silver-hair came into the kitchen, she saw the three bowls of porridge. She tasted the largest bowl, which belonged to the Big Bear, and found it too cold; then she tasted the middle-sized bowl, which belonged to the Middle-sized Bear, and found it too hot; then she tasted the smallest bowl, which belonged to the Little Bear, and it was just right, and she ate it all.

She went into the parlour, and there were three chairs. She tried the biggest chair, which belonged to the Big Bear, and found it too high; then she tried the middle-sized chair, which belonged to the Middle-sized Bear, and she found it too broad; then she tried the little chair, which belonged to the Little Bear, and found it just right, but she sat in it so hard that she broke it.

Now Silver-hair was by this time very tired, and she went upstairs to the chamber, and there she found three beds. She tried the largest bed, which belonged to the Big Bear, and found it too soft; then she tried the middle-sized bed, which belonged to the Middle-sized Bear, and she found it too hard; then she tried the smallest bed, which belonged to the Little Bear, and found it just right, so she lay down upon it, and fell fast asleep.

While Silver-hair was lying fast asleep, the three bears came home from their walk. They came into the kitchen, to get their porridge, but when the Big Bear went to his, he growled out:

“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN TASTING MY PORRIDGE!”

and the Middle-sized Bear looked into his bowl, and said:

“Somebody Has Been Tasting My Porridge!”

and the Little Bear piped:

“Somebody has tasted my porridge and eaten it all up!”

Then they went into the parlour, and the Big Bear growled:

“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN SITTING IN MY CHAIR!”

and the Middle-sized Bear said:

“Somebody Has Been Sitting In My Chair!”

and the Little Bear piped:

“Somebody has been sitting in my chair, and has broken it all to pieces!”

So they went upstairs into the chamber, and the Big Bear growled:

“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN TUMBLING MY BED!”

and the Middle-sized Bear said:

“Somebody Has Been Tumbling My Bed!”

and the little Bear piped:

“Somebody has been tumbling my bed, and here she is!”

At that, Silver-hair woke in a fright, and jumped out of the window and ran away as fast as her legs could carry her, and never went near the Three Bears’ snug little house again.

Three Bears - Russian folk tale, read online

One girl left home for the forest. She got lost in the forest and began to look for her way home, but she did not find it, but came to the house in the forest.

The door was open; she looked at the door, sees: there is no one in the house, and entered. Three bears lived in this house. One bear was a father, his name was Mikhailo Ivanovich. He was big and shaggy. The other was a bear. She was smaller, and her name was Nastasya Petrovna. The third was a little bear cub, and his name was Mishutka. The bears were not at home, they went for a walk in the forest.

There were two rooms in the house: one was a dining room, the other was a bedroom. The girl entered the dining room and saw three cups of stew on the table. The first cup, a very large one, was Mikhail Ivanovich's. The second cup, smaller, was Nastasya Petrovnina; the third, little blue cup, was Mishutkin. Beside each cup lay a spoon: large, medium and small.

The girl took the biggest spoon and drank from the biggest cup; then she took the middle spoon and drank from the middle cup; then she took a small spoon and drank from a little blue cup; and Mishutkin's stew seemed to her the best.

The girl wants to sit down and sees three chairs by the table: one large one is for Mikhail Ivanych; the other is smaller - Nastasya Petrovnin, and the third, small, with a blue little pillow - Mishutkin. She climbed onto a large chair and fell; then she sat down on the middle chair, it was awkward on it; then she sat down on a small chair and laughed—it was so good.

She took the little blue cup into her lap and began to eat. She ate all the stew and began to swing on a chair.

The chair broke and she fell to the floor.

She got up, picked up a chair and went to another room. There were three beds: one big bed for Mikhail Ivanovich; the other middle one is Nastasya Petrovnina; the third small one is Mishenkina.

The girl lay down in the big bed, it was too spacious for her; lay down in the middle - it was too high; she lay down in the little one - the bed fit her just right, and she fell asleep.

And the bears came home hungry and wanted to have dinner.

The big bear took the cup, looked and roared in a terrible voice:

- WHO DRINKED IN MY CUP?

Nastasya Petrovna looked at her cup and growled not so loudly:

— WHO DRINKED IN MY CUP?

And Mishutka saw his empty cup and squeaked in a thin voice:

— WHO DRINKED IN MY CUP AND DRINKED EVERYTHING?

Mikhail Ivanovich looked at his chair and roared in a terrible voice:

— WHO SIT ON MY CHAIR AND PUSHED IT FROM THE PLACE?

Nastasya Petrovna looked at her chair and growled not so loudly:

- WHO WAS SITTING ON MY CHAIR AND PUSHING IT OUT?

Mishutka looked at his broken chair and squeaked:

— WHO SIT ON MY CHAIR AND BROKEN IT?

The bears came to another room.

— WHO WAS IN MY BED AND KRUGGED IT? roared Mikhail Ivanovitch in a terrible voice.

— WHO WAS IN MY BED AND KRUGGED IT? growled Nastasya Petrovna, not so loudly.

And Mishenka set up a bench, got into his bed and squeaked in a thin voice:

- WHO WAS IN MY BED?

And suddenly he saw a girl and squealed as if he was being cut:

— There she is! Hold it, hold it! Here she is! Ay-ya-yay! Hold on!

He wanted to bite her.

The girl opened her eyes, saw bears and rushed to the window. It was open, she jumped out the window and ran away. And the bears did not catch up with her.

Three bears - Russian folk tale. Read online.

Three Bears is a fairy tale about a girl who got lost in the forest and ended up in the bears' house. There she behaved very rudely: without permission, she ate from every cup, sat on every chair, lay in every bed, which made the bears who returned home very angry. The tale is presented in the presentation of L.N. Tolstoy.

One girl left home for the forest. She got lost in the forest and began to look for her way home, but she did not find it, but came to the house in the forest.

The door was open: she looked through the door, saw that there was no one in the house, and entered.

Three bears lived in this house. One bear was a father, his name was Mikhailo Ivanovich. He was big and shaggy. The other was a bear. She was smaller, and her name was Nastasya Petrovna. The third was a little bear cub, and his name was Mishutka.

The bears were not at home, they went for a walk in the forest.

There were two rooms in the house: one was a dining room, the other was a bedroom. The girl entered the dining room and saw three cups of stew on the table. The first cup, a very large one, was Mikhail Ivanovich's. The second cup, smaller, was Nastasya Petrovna's; the third, little blue cup, was Mishutkin. Beside each cup lay a spoon: large, medium and small.

The girl wants to sit down and sees three chairs by the table: one big one is for Mikhail Ivanych; the other is smaller - Nastasya Petrovna, and the third, small, with a blue little pillow - Mishutkin.

She climbed onto a large chair and fell down; then she sat down on the middle chair, it was awkward on it; then she sat down on a small chair and laughed—it was so good. She took the little blue cup on her knees and began to eat. She ate all the stew and began to swing on a chair.

The chair broke and she fell to the floor. She got up, picked up a chair and went to another room.

There were three beds: one big bed for Mikhail Ivanych; the other middle one is Nastasya Petrovna; the third small one is Mishenkina.

The girl lay down in the big bed, it was too spacious for her; lay down in the middle - it was too high; she lay down in the little one - the bed fit her just right, and she fell asleep.

And the bears came home hungry and wanted to have dinner.

The big bear took the cup, looked and roared in a terrible voice:
— WHO DRINK IN MY CUP?
Nastasya Petrovna looked at her cup and growled not so loudly:
- WHO DRINKED IN MY CUP?
And Mishutka saw his empty cup and squeaked in a thin voice:
— WHO DRINKED IN MY CUP AND DRINKED EVERYTHING?

Mikhail Ivanovich looked at his chair and roared in a terrible voice:
"WHO SAT ON MY CHAIR AND PUSHED IT FROM THE PLACE?"
Nastasya Petrovna glanced at her chair and growled not so loudly:
— WHO SIT ON MY CHAIR AND PUSHED IT FROM THE PLACE?
Mishutka looked at his broken chair and squeaked:
— WHO SIT ON MY CHAIR AND BROKEN IT?
Bears came to another room.
- WHO LEG IN MY BED AND CRASHED IT? roared Mikhail Ivanovitch in a terrible voice.
- WHO LEG IN MY BED AND CRASHED IT? growled Nastasya Petrovna, not so loudly.

And Mishenka set up a little bench, climbed into his bed and squeaked in a thin voice:
— WHO WAS IN MY BED?

And suddenly he saw a girl and squealed as if he was being cut:
— There she is! Hold it, hold it! Here she is! Ay-ya-yay! Hold on!
He wanted to bite her.

Somebody and the three bears

Somebody and the Three Blairs by Marilyn Tolhurst

"The Three Bears" | Fairy Tales and Other Traditional Stories | Robert Southey

Three Bears - Russian folk tale, read online

Three bears - Russian folk tale. Read online.

Learn more