Hannah Gold

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and Harper Collins in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Bear is intriguing from the very first page. Gold presented a story that is not only highly entertaining, but also informative, heartwarming, and heartbreaking at the same time. This book is infused with the reality of global warming's affects on the polar ice caps, and of course polar bears. There is a lot of factual information woven into the story in such a way that really show more makes sense to the younger readers this story is geared towards.

Our main character, April, is small in stature but large in personality. I loved everything about her. She is strong, independent, and empathetic. I do think for a majority of this book the relationship between April and her father was extremely unhealthy, and I think that the book could have portrayed a healthy relationship without taking away from the story.

The Last Bear had beautiful illustrations throughout, and I really loved the art style. There was also a bit of Norwegian influence in the book as well. I really liked the use of the word "friluftsliv" which means "open-air life." This really tied into the story, and I appreciated that we saw this word pop up multiple times.

Overall this is a gorgeous story of finding friendship in unexpected places, and finding and using your own voice. I highly recommend this book to any animal lover or child interested in learning more about global warming. show less

April lives alone with her Dad, a scientist at a university who is so caught up in his work that April rarely gets to spend tim with him. April doesn't have any friends at school either. But that's ok with April; she prefers animals to humans anyway.

When her Dad announces they're going together to a remote island weather station in the Arctic Circle for 6 months, this is the most exciting news for April... spending time with her Dad, exploring the wilderness. Only Granny Apples isn't very show more pleased about Dad taking April off into the wilds and freezing temperatures for 6 months, thinking that on 'Bear Island' April might be at risk of being eaten by a bear!

No danger of that though. The ice has been melting and a polar bear hasn't been seen on Bear Island for some years.... until now.

The Last Bear is a beautiful story of a friendship between a girl and bear, of the importance of family, of climate change, and being yourself.

I have one small niggle with the book, which is small but irritated me more than it should have. It's not a plot spoiler - I'm sure it shouldn't be possible to catch a cold on a remote isolated island where you have been living for nearly 6 months, with no visits from outsiders. Hmm.

My petty grievance aside, I loved The Last Bear and would have loved this book as a child and I hope there's more to come from Hannah Gold. show less

A moving depiction including themes of communication, grief and friendship across species. Relationships and emotion are portrayed with creativity and sensitivity from the perspective of a young, introverted child. She and her grieving, scientist father move to a remote and frozen island where she befriends a bear in need of help. Beautifully told and illustrated.

The friendship between April and Bear is as real and beautiful as any friendship between two humans. Lovingly written. Includes a map of Bear Island and an Author's Note.