I have a well-documented soft spot for children’s books and remain especially fond of exceptional picture books. From my friends at Enchanted Lion Books, who previously brought us such gems as Blexbolex’s People and Albertine’s Little Bird, comes Bear Despair (public library) by French illustrator Gaëtan Dorémus — an utterly lovely wordless story about what happens when you take a bear’s teddy bear.

Beneath the exquisite cross-hatched line drawings for young readers lies a familiar twinge of the all-consuming obsession we’ve all experienced, at one time or another, while grasping after a fixation.

Bear Despair is the final installment in ELB’s wonderful Stories Without Words series, which also includes Ice and The Giant Seed by Arthur Geisert and The Chicken Thief, Rooster’s Revenge and Fox and Hen Together by Béatrice Rodriguez.

Images courtesy of Enchanted Lion Books