Honestly, I wasn’t the biggest fan of Berenstain books when I was a kid. Bears living in tree houses didn’t make a lot of sense, and the Bible messages always seemed a bit off. Of course, I wasn’t your average kid and wasn’t fond of being read to. I’d read something myself or not at all, so I didn’t get any further explanation beyond what I found on the pages. It’s been decades since I last read one of their books, so when I came across The Berenstain Bears 5-Minute Inspirational Stories, I thought I’d give it a shot to see if it’d be something to recommend.

As an adult, I now see the Little House on the Prairie style church, community, and particular denominational undertones, which is going to be received more easily by some than others. (If this was the case with these books when I was a child, then it makes sense why my family didn’t have Berenstain books in our home. However, we did watch the aforementioned TV show, which was easier to follow and from which I learned some interesting lessons.) The cheesy names and artwork are exactly as I remember, and the stories have the same lengthy conflict that’s wrapped up in a tidy single sentence or two. For those who with small children much less critical than I was (okay, I still am, and became an even bigger art snob—just forgive me), these stories may prove helpful when combined with guidance and further explanation.

My only real concern with this Berenstain book in particular has to do with the third story, “The Berenstain Bears Love Their Neighbors,” the Berenstain version of “The Good Samaritan” parable. The “neighbors” are stereotypical hillbilly folk—dirty clothes, clunky car, and all. Their accent and dialect are inconsistently written and the whole story left me rather uncomfortable. The fact that there’s a word missing on page 50 set aside (really, in a simple children’s read-along book), I’d still refrain from using this specific story at all. The rest I could work with.

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”