BradyBooks

My one son has a special connection with bears. So, even though I wasn't looking to purchase a book I could not resist the story line of this one. He plans on taking it to school on Monday so I had three days to finish it--and finish it I did. I had not planned on this book being my first read of the new year, but yet it was my first read. Sometimes, the unplanned are even more special than the planned. At least this is what I've noticed in my life.

I do think this book is special. It's extremely touching and a book that means a lot to someone that has lost someone. Though it is somewhat ( a tad) slow to start and a tad slow to end, the characters are so likable I couldn't put it down. I laughed and I cried which rates a book pretty high in my world. 

So what's it about?

Charlie Hall's mother dies and he's left with a huge void he can't fill. His father is a kind man but he has turned inward in his grief, and Charlie has a hard time communicating with him. As if his mother's death is not tragic enough, Charlie must navigate the turbulent waters of Junior High School. ( ugh-Junior High!...I swear if someone offered me a billion dollars on the condition that I'd return to the past to re-do Junior High I'd say NO WAY but that's another story!:) Poor Charlie--I felt so terrible for him and he's such an endearing little guy too. I think the worst part is that Charlie felt very much alone in the world ....until he is befriended by a Grizzly bear (which is the coolest part)! And this Grizzly bear is no ordinary bear!

You'll probably like this book  if you have faced some tragedy, hated Junior High and you are an animal lover.  Or you'll like it if you've made peace with unplanned changes in your life or if you just find something appealing about a boy making friends with a bear.