“When two small bears don't get along, The grownups worry - what went wrong?”
—Opening quote for "Get in a Fight"
The Berenstain Bears Get in a Fight is a book in The Berenstain Bears series that was first published on April 12, 1982.
This book was later adapted into an episode of the same name for the 1985 TV series The Berenstain Bears.
Synopsis[]
Brother and Sister get along well, but Brother wakes up in a bad mood one morning and a fight between him and Sister ensues.
Plot[]
Most mornings, Brother and Sister wake up and get along fine. They take turns sharing the bathroom, saying "please and thank you" at breakfast, and sitting on the bus together. After school, the two work on their treehouse.
However, one morning, Brother woke up feeling grouchy and started yelling at Sister for dangling her feet in his face, who in turn responds by telling Brother to "shut up". Sister than ran to the bathroom and deliberately took a long time to get ready, provoking Brother to snap at her and pound on the door. Papa then came out of his bathroom, and told Brother off for yelling like that and for pounding on the door, Brother tells him Sister is taking a long time to get ready and on purpose. Just before Brother pounds on the door again Sister came out, greeting Papa, pleasantly, further irritating Brother. As the day went on, Brother and Sister didn't talk to each other at breakfast, they sat in different seats on the school bus, and drew a line down the middle of their treehouse to separate themselves.
It suddenly began to rain and both Brother and Sister go back inside the treehouse to resume their fight, with Sister taking back her modeling clay and putting it all in one ball and Brother putting his trucks and toys somewhere Sister couldn't reach them, in addition to getting louder and yelling at each other. Papa, who had enough of the whole thing, tried to intervene, but ended up making things worse. Mama whistles at them and orders everyone to calm down. She questions the cubs about what this fight is all about. Brother and Sister tried to remember what they were fighting over but they couldn't. Mama calmly tells them that everyone fights from time to time, even her and Papa (Which Papa denies, proving Mama's point).
At that time, the rain comes to a stop, and a rainbow forms in the sky. Mama explained that the rainbow was the peace after the storm, similar to bears making peace after a fight. Brother and Sister said sorry to each other and made up with a hug, and returned to their treehouse to erase the line they drew.
Differences in the TV episode[]
- Papa Bear arrives at the table in a grumpy mood, then heads to work at his shop.
- Sister calls Brother ‘Grouchpuss’, then skips into the bathroom instead of telling Brother to shut up.
- Papa chastises Brother for banging on the door and calling Sister names.
- While Sister and Brother are in their treehouse arguing, they continue to argue even when it rains, and Mama orders Brother and Sister to come inside immediately to dry off in their room before they catch a cold.
- After Sister took back her modeling clay (which Brother used to make dinosaurs), Brother knocked over his puzzle that Sister was using.
Publication history[]
- 1982, Random House (Paperback)