“The author has created a series of just-right, gentle, and concise little stories designed to guide parents and children in learning good manners and self-care. These stories are cleverly conceived and impeccably executed. Perhaps every generation needs such a pair of moderately modern, educationally meaningful characters—Bear and Piglet are not only beloved by young readers but also enjoy the enthusiastic support of librarians and teachers.
The messages conveyed in the stories are readily apparent from the titles and easy to remember. The plots all stem from everyday life, both at home and outside, so children can easily relate to them and find relevant examples when they or their friends encounter similar situations. For parents, these stories serve as an additional tool, especially when their own lecturing falls flat—they can be used as vivid illustrations.
In this duo, Bear consistently plays the role of guide, admonisher, encourager, and teacher—just as the supposedly ‘all-knowing’ educational and moral authority in traditional knowledge-transmission structures. His position should be obeyed without excessive questioning, for his own sake as well as for the benefit of everyone. ‘Stop asking so many questions,’ Bear says firmly, ‘just do what’s right.’”
—Katja Štesl, https://www.sodobnost.com/sebastijan-pregelj-medo-in-pujsi-2-katja-stesl/

★ This picture book has won Slovenia's "Golden Pear Award," the country's highest honor for children's literature. Its characters have appeared in Slovenia's national magazine Cicido, and the book has been adapted into an animated series (highly acclaimed and popular), a puppet show (sold out every performance), merchandise (including dolls and T-shirts), and academic research (a related thesis at the Ljubljana Faculty of Education). A Croatian translation is forthcoming—confirming both its classic status and its broad expansion potential.
★ This is a set of children's social skills textbooks that evolves from "behavioral correction" to "mindset shaping," and further advances to "community citizenship awareness and psychological resilience." Parents can immediately apply its insights to solve parenting challenges, while children can learn and practice these skills right away when facing social and life-related difficulties.
★ At age 3, children learn self-management; at age 5, they master interpersonal skills; and by age 7, they integrate into their communities—this series accompanies children through every stage of growth. The first book nurtures a child who is "healthy, safe, and well-mannered," helping them learn to "take care of themselves." The second develops a young citizen who is "socially aware, capable of independent thinking, responsible, and proactive," guiding children to "get along with others." The third fosters an individual who is "psychologically resilient, adept at handling complex relationships, collaborative within the community, and respectful of diversity," teaching children how to "become part of the community."
★ Abstract social-emotional learning is broken down into concrete scenarios and dialogues that young children can easily understand. Each book covers more than 20 of the most challenging parenting situations for children aged 3–7, and every story provides gentle, effective, and replicable dialogue models and solutions. Children can readily identify with the characters, and parents can use these stories to effortlessly introduce real-life lessons, moving away from lecturing.
★ With vivid characters, engaging stories, and adorable illustrations, this series is specially designed for early readers, supporting language development, imagination, and parent–child interaction, while also serving as a natural resource for educational settings.
★ An English translation of the entire series is available.

The series includes three titles:
Friends with Different Personalities
Saying "Please" and "Thank You"
Best Friends

Hello everyone! We are Little Bear and Piggy.

Little Bear and Piggy are beloved characters and friends of young children—those who cannot yet read or are just beginning to learn. They never pretend to be anything they’re not; they’re as genuine as kids themselves: sincere and curious, sometimes making mistakes (Piggy tends to make a few more), occasionally arguing or sulking, often needing each other’s help or a helping hand from others—but in the end, every problem is resolved happily. Children easily see themselves in their stories. Through one tale after another, Little Bear and Piggy build confidence and set positive examples, all with kindness and a touch of humor.

From Early Readers to the International Stage
For five years, Little Bear and Piggy have regularly appeared in Cicido, Slovenia’s oldest and most widely circulated magazine for preschoolers. Their first two picture books both won the Golden Pear Award—a prestigious honor jointly presented by the Ljubljana City Library and the Slovenian Library Association, recognizing excellence in children’s and young adult literature. Next year, Croatian translations of these two books will be published.

A Range of Spin-Offs
An animated adaptation co-produced by Vodnik House and the Slovenian Youth Publishing House helps children take their first steps into reading. A puppet show of the same name has been running at the Ljubljana Puppet Theatre for two consecutive years, consistently selling out, and it has also been showcased at Zagreb’s largest puppet festival. The Faculty of Education in Ljubljana has dedicated several academic papers and even a graduation thesis to these popular characters. Their digital home—the website and online store at WWW.MEDOINPUJSI.SI—is the central hub for all things Little Bear and Piggy, and it has earned the professional Gold Netko Award as the best website for children and young adults.

The Creative Team and Core Values
The creators—author Sebastijan Pregelj and illustrator Igor Šinkovec—are both acclaimed, award-winning artists. In their stories, Little Bear and Piggy champion friendship, cooperation, understanding, acceptance of differences, and kindness. As a result, their plush toys have become much more than mere playthings—they offer parents and children a fun, educational starting point for imaginative play. Storytelling and listening during early childhood foster language skills, emotional intelligence, empathy, imagination, social abilities, and cognitive development. Stories help children understand themselves and others, while play allows them to explore roles and tackle challenges.

Following the great success of the first book in the Little Bear and Piggy series, these two characters are back with even more adventures. These heartwarming, entertaining short stories are perfect for young readers just beginning to learn to read. Children love the vivid, detailed illustrations that bring the tales to life. These adorable characters were carefully crafted by Slovenia’s well-known author Sebastijan Pregelj and the highly talented illustrator and animator Igor Šinkovec, making them come alive with personality and depth.

The little bear and the piglet are inseparable best friends. Twenty-one stories will take you into a colorful world filled with sincerity, trust, acceptance, humor, and joy.
These short tales will touch your heart, while the gentle illustrations will lead you into a world brimming with warmth and imagination—where true friendship brings happiness and teaches us how to grow.
This book conveys the meaning of genuine friendship, the ups and downs of life, small setbacks, and those little acts of kindness that bind us together.

Sebastian Prehgal
A Slovenian writer born in Ljubljana in 1970. He graduated from the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ljubljana, majoring in History. Since 1991, he has been publishing short stories in literary magazines. He has published four collections of short stories and six novels. Four of his novels have been shortlisted for the Kresnik Award, Slovenia’s annual prize for best novel as selected by Delo newspaper. Several of his novels have been translated into German.
Prehgal is a member of the Slovenian Writers’ Association. He lives and writes in Ljubljana.

Igor Šinkovec
An illustrator and animator. He collaborates with publishers both in Slovenia and abroad, creating illustrations for books and textbooks, and contributes monthly to the children’s magazines SiciBan and Galeb. His work has been exhibited in group shows, solo exhibitions, and illustration biennials. He also works in animation, having created the animated short film “Egon’s Hat” and serving as art director and animator for the educational game series “Professor Florijan Umek” at the Natural History Museum in Ljubljana.
The book “From Genes to Stars,” illustrated by him and written by Sašo Dolenc, won the Golden Pear Award. His illustrations for Peter Svetina’s picture book “Timbuktu” received the Kristina Brenkova Award, and he also designed the stage sets for the puppet show adapted from that book. Additionally, his illustrations for Boštjan Gorenc Pižama’s picture book “Have You Ever Tasted the Moon?” earned him a nomination for the Levstik Award and a place on the IBBY Honour List. He was also nominated for the Levstik Award for another work by the same author, “Have You Ever Ridden a Seahorse?”, and received special recognition at the Kristina Brenkova Awards for Svetlana Makarović’s picture book “Owl Chef.”