Bear's best friend by Lucy Coats and Sarah Dyer

Bloomsbury, 2013. ISBN 978 1 4088 2726 0
(Age: 3+) Picture book. Topiary. Animals. Friendship. Bear has many friends, but no best friend and is concerned about this. He makes lovely animals by clipping back trees and each of the animals is impressed with what he has done, so much so that other animals come along and request a tree be clipped for them as well. His tree pictures are well known for miles around, and stand as a testament to his hard work, but he still does not have a best friend.
His tears fall onto his snipping scissors and suddenly he hears a voice ask why he is crying. Turning he spies another bear and they become best fiends, doing things together just as best friends do.
The bear continues his special skill at making tree pictures and the new word, topiary is introduced at the end of this story of friendship. While a slight story, the book would well suit a class looking at the theme of friendship and would be useful in a classroom where new words are introduced, especially those that are a little out of the ordinary, but children will have no doubt about the meaning of the word topiary at the end of this story.
Fran Knight