Maurice Sendak's Little Bear

Little Bear would like to play in the snow. He asks Mother Bear to make him a hat, pants and coat to keep him warm. He finally decides what he needs is his fur coat.

It is Little Bear's birthday and Mother Bear is nowhere to be found. He decides to make Birthday Soup for his friends. As he is serving the soup Mother Bear surprises them all with a birthday cake. As Little Bear and his friends are painting Hen's house, white  paint tips onto him. He goes home to get cleaned up and on the way pretends he is a polar bear in the North Pole. Little Bear decides to catch a fish for Mother Bear. Little Bear and Owl pretend that they catch an octopus and a whale.

Little Bear decides that he will stay up all night to see the sunrise. Little Bear doesn't feel well. Mother Bear tells him that he must stay in bed to feel better. His friends come to visit with all sorts of ideas about what Little Bear needs to do to get better. Little Bear and his friends explore a cave and are frightened by their echoes.

Little Bear tells his friends that Father Bear is coming home with a present for him. His friends think that Little Bear will have a mermaid at his house. Little Bear takes a bath to get ready for Father Bear's arrival. He imagines meeting a mermaid. Father Bear shows Little Bear what fishing on a boat is like.

Little Bear tells Mother Bear three wishes to prolong going to bed. They are: 1) flying on a cloud 2) being a Viking and 3) visiting a princess who has chocolate cake to share. Little Bear can't find anyone to play with -- until he discovers his shadow. Little Bear needs to find a present for Mother Bear's birthday. He enlists his friends to help but they keep trading presents between each other. Little Bear ends up giving his original gift -- a bouquet of flowers.

Little Bear prepares for his trip to Grandmother's house by carefully packing jam, soup and cookies between pine boughs. As he meets his friends along the way his gifts are eaten. Grandmother Bear is excited to see Little Bear and is delighted by his present of pine boughs. Grandfather Bear says there is no way Little Bear could make him tired. Little Bear leads Grandfather Bear exploring, up a tree, and rolling down a hill. After lunch Grandfather falls asleep and Little Bear soon follows. Grandmother Bear tells Little Bear the story of when Mother Bear had a robin.