Deep In Bear Country - A Berenstain Bearcast

Buckle up, Bear Country—this one’s a doozy. This week, we dive into The Berenstain Bears: God Made You Special, a book that on the surface has the best of intentions but stumbles hard into some serious pitfalls. What happens when a children’s book about faith and differences accidentally reinforces inspiration porn, infantilization, and outdated disability … Continue reading "Episode 476 – The Berenstain Bears: God Made You Special"

“Love thy neighbor” sounds great—until your neighbors are literally the local drug dealers. Join me as we dive into The Berenstain Bears Love Their Neighbors, a book that asks us to embrace community… even if your neighbors were previously arrested for selling drugs to elementary school kids. This episode covers Bear Country’s ever-changing geography, the … Continue reading "Episode 475 – The Berenstain Bears Love Their Neighbors!"

Did The Berenstain Bears’ New Neighbors really tackle racism? Or was it just another 90s attempt at a “message book” that missed the mark? In this episode of Deep in Bear Country, we take a deep dive into the 1994 classic that started it all—literally! This is the book that launched this podcast, but I’ve … Continue reading "Episode 474 – The Berenstain Bears’ New Neighbors!"

The Berenstain Bears’ Biggest Continuity Shake-Up?! A new school year means new teachers, and Brother Bear is in for a surprise! In “The Berenstain Bears: We Love Our Teacher” (2024), we explore what makes a great teacher, the anxieties of moving up a grade, and—wait for it—some wild continuity-breaking moments in Bear Country history! Can … Continue reading "Episode 473 – The Berenstain Bears We Love Our Teacher!"

Mike Berenstain is BACK on the SHOW after having been away for TOO LONG. As always it’s a pleasure to catch up and check in and chat about Tintin. Enjoy!

This week, the Bear Family gets into a bit of trouble in a completely believable and scientifically accurate way! It’s “The Berenstain Bears Blast Off!” and it’s steeped in believability! I swear!

This week, I’m circling back to a book I skipped over for whatever reason and… wow, it’s a thoughtful piece of writing for kids. A surprisingly complex look at Culture of Violence Theory, it’s “The Berenstain Bears and No Guns Allowed!”

1 – 2 – 3 – 4- 5 – 6 – 7 – 8 – 9 – 10! 1 – 2 – 3 – 4- 5 – 6 – 7 – 8 – 9 – 10! Numbers numbers, WOO! This is probably it. This is probably my worst episode. It’s “The Berenstain Bears’ Numbers Book!”

Why do rotten eggs smell like rotten eggs? How many different kinds of volcanoes are there?! WHAT IS THE THEORY OF RELATIVITY?!!! I. Don’t. Know. BUT. This week, “The Berenstain Bears’ Big School Project” at least pretends to attempt to answer those questions. Also, papier mache volcanoes: better than robots?

New Year, Same Show. It’s “The Berenstain Bears Share and Share Alike!” and are you ready to start off 2025 with some ETHICAL QUESTIONS?! I hope so. I really hope so.

Oh, thank God we’re done. It’s the FINAL edition of “The Berenstain Bears’ Holiday Cookbook” and we MADE IT TO CHRISTMAS and ELANA IS HERE and we’re FINALLY DONE and that CAKE did NOT turn OUT.

NO CHRISTMAS EPISODE THIS WEEK! Instead, we’re focusing on TAKING TURNS. It’s The Berenstain Bears Take Turns and, hey! Give a little, won’t you? National and International Organizations Trans Lifeline Website: https://www.translifeline.org/ The Trevor Project Website: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/ Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Website: https://www.hrc.org/ Trans Youth Equality Foundation (TYEF) Website: https://www.transyouthequality.org/ Mermaids (UK-based) Website: https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/ Montana-Based … Continue reading "Episode 465 – The Berenstain Bears Take Turns"

It’s “The Berenstain Bears Christmas Fun Sticker & Activity Book” and they’re really stretching the definition of “fun” here.

It’s a Christmas miracle as I take a look at a book I’ve already covered! That’s right, we’re going back and re-evaluating “The Berenstain Bears Meet Santa Bear!” It’s a holiday treat!

GOBBLE GOBBLE! It’s AFTER Thanksgiving, but we don’t care! Because this chapter in “The Berenstain Bears’ Holiday Cookbook” is set after Thanksgiving anyways, y’all! Elana is BACK to talk about some eatible and not-so-eatible vittles! GOBBLE!

Let’s learn about Heaven! It’s “The Berenstain Bears Learn About Heaven” in which the Berenstain Bears learn about…. wait for it… wait for it… HEAVEN!

When the Bear Family finds themselves overbooked and running late, they turn to one of the Biblical Prophets(?) to solve(??) the lateness problem(???). It’s “The Berenstain Bears Bears On Time Solving The Lateness Problem!”

Noise, Noise, NOISE, NOIIIISE! It’s “The Berenstain Bears Too Much Noise!”

Happy FALLoWEEN everyone! I hope you have your costumes picked out for the big FALL FESTIVAL and that you get to go Trick or Treating for FALL candy! What a bunch of wonderful FALL TRADITIONS we have this time of year. Anywho, Elana is back as we discuss the FALL TREATS we made out of … Continue reading "Episode 457 – The Berenstain Bears’ Holiday Cookbook FALLoween!"

The Berenstain Bears have a LOOONG history with Halloween. Those bears LOOOVE to Trick and they love to treat and they love to combine the two and trick and treat. But, sometimes, it’s all about the party. This week, the Bear Family throws caution to the wind and hosts a BIG HALLOWEEN PARTY in “The … Continue reading "Episode 455 – The Berenstain Bears’ BIG HALLOWEEN PARTY!"