Ahoy There, Little Polar Bear [first edition]

In Hans de Beer's Ahoy There, Little Polar Bear, Lars jumps in the sea to catch a fish, but it is he himself who gets caught in a giant net! Dumped into the hold of a ship with piles of slimy fish, he is taken away from his icy home in the North Pole. Up on the ship's deck, he meets the ship's cat Nemo, whom he asks to help him get home. They both creep ashore at the next port, to a town where Lars's white fur gets very dirty, and another cat arranges for him to hop aboard a ship heading back to the North Pole. Soon enough, the young cub is reunited with his loving parents. "Lars was happy to be home again, but often he sat and stared out to sea looking for ships--and ship's cats." While the story line is simple, de Beer's illustrations are quite endearing. Young children will be taken in by Lars's harmless adventuring and safe return home.