The Last Bear: Winner of the Blue Peter Award – ‘A dazzling debut’ THE TIMES

I read this book to be able to recommend to other home educating families and it is absolutely stunning! It tells the story of April, an 11 year old girl, struggling to find herself after the death of her mother. She moves to the Arctic with her dad and discovers a polar bear. Their friendship is simply stunning and the bear helps April to process grief and pulls her out of the loneliness she has been experiencing. The descriptions of the artic landscape is stunning and the relationship between April and Bear had me in tears many times! Hannah Gold is an amazing author! This book is definitely for older children that can manage the themes around death of a parent, loss, grief etc. Great for any children concerned about the environment as this book talks a lot about the melting polar ice caps and how that is affecting polar bears. Perfect for eco warriors! Simply stunning and one of the best children's books I have EVER read.

Wow, I've just finished Hannah Gold's most wonderful book! I'm an adult, I hope with all my heart that this book is being read by adults to children all over the world. The author takes us on a breathtaking journey of a lonely child hoping to rekindle the love between her and her father. The story unfolds with beautiful, vivid descriptions of 'Bear island' including the beaten weather station where her father conducts his very important job of recording the temperatures of the Artic, shedding light on the seriousness of climate change and how it's happening right now. As the story unfolds, we are taken on an adventure in an icy cold world, where April Wood follows her belief and finds a very sad, hungry and injured Polar Bear. Despite objections and lack of faith from her father, and with the help of an old encyclopedia, April learns that the Bear is stuck on the island. Without the ice caps which have melted now he will never return to Svalbard where his kind are congregated. Bear's fate seems sealed but for the power of love, kindness and an enormous bravery of a very small girl. April hatches an amazing plan, which almost sees her demise, to get her best friend home where he belongs. Read to the very end, it was an emotional tale, an inspiring brief glimpse of a young girls strength and humility in the face of enormous adversity to do the right thing for a Polar Bear. Astounding!! May we all learn that no matter how small, the changes we can make in our lifestyles today can and will affect the future of our planet and every living being on it. Thank you.

My 7 yo son and I read this exquisite book together - a couple of chapters each bed time- over a couple of delicious weeks. April’s adventures are compelling, and the story is a great one. but the deeper themes of dealing with grief, personal and for the planet... and the rallying cry to do something about climate change... it’s masterful. Every child (and grown up for that matter) will love this. I was in floods of tears for the final few chapters- so moving it was. I said to James “I don’t think I can keep reading this, I’m crying too much” ... my wise little soul replied “ yes you can Mum- you can read it, you just need to cry too”. Here’s James’ thoughts on the book: “I really liked the book because it was really compelling. It was hard to go to bed between chapters. I particularly liked when April first met Bear. When they were climbing up the mountain, that was a bit risky... I don’t think I’d like to do that! It was sad to learn about what was happening for the polar bears and the melting ice caps. I’m going to try to do something about climate change but I’m worried that I won’t be old enough and it’ll either be fixed or melted by the time I’m grown up. You should definitely read this book with your kids.” One of the great gifts of the time we spent with Bear was that my little man got to see me vulnerable, to understand the feelings I have about the planet, why I do the work I do, and how frustrating grown ups can be sometime. We got so close during our Bear weeks. I feel like it’s been a little pocket of something deeply precious for us. Hannah - you are a magician. I’ll be forever grateful for helping me to have some conversations with my little man that I would never have been able to start without Bears help.

I picked this up, sucked in by the cover and the fact it’s about a bear. (My nickname!) April moves to a remote Arctic island for six months, with her father due his work as a scientific researcher. Bear Island doesn’t have any bears left on it, so April is told. One never-ending summers night, April discovers the last bear! Trapped on the island due to climate change, hurt and alone. Now it’s important to know that this is a children’s book before you start, but that’s part of its beauty and it doesn’t take anything away from the story or the concept. If anything it makes it, especially the beautiful illustrations by Levi Pinfold. Without dropping any spoilers, the books has themes of loss, love, adventure and climate change. I can imagine reading this to my boys in a few years time and discussing the concepts and questions it’s sure to evoke. Equally, it would make a great book club read! Overall, a perfect debut and future classic. Plus a surprise naked cover! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Last Bear is beautifully written by an author with real passion and understanding. The connection between April and Bear grows as the story develops and drew me in so completely until I felt part of the story too.. I am so looking forward to reading Hannah's next book about Bear, but this time I will have a hankie ready!! Thank you, Hannah, for this beautiful story and for reminding me that we can make a difference when we all do our bit.

I knew I would love this book. I was certain of it. It has everything I love in a children's story: a fierce main character, child-animal friendship, wilderness setting, and a very important message. I wasn't expecting to want to bawl my eyes out in the end but hey, this is what happens when a book is nothing short of perfect. I hope many children read this book. I also hope many adults read this book. It is exactly the book the world needs right now, more than ever. It is about the connection between humans and nature, the difference a single voice can make and the need to protect what should be considered the most precious thing we have as humans: the planet. It should be an essential read for all kids and I hope librarians and school teachers add it to their reading lists. I hope booksellers feature it everywhere they can and that it gets hype from all sides. It deserves it. Some books don't, not really, but this one does. It does not just because of what it represents but also because it can perhaps help kids realise what they are capable of doing. They're the future of this planet and they're the ones that will suffer the most if everything stays the same. I think it will inspire many to go on and have careers in sustainability and conservation. It will teach them to love the wild and that it's okay to love animals more than people. I wish this book existed when I was a child and I am just so lucky to have read it as an adult.

It's a long time since I read a children's book and much longer since a book brought me to tears. This is such a beautiful tale of a girl's search for friendship, understanding and a relationship with a lost polar bear, and her own father. Dad is a workaholic grieving father, and she has the opportunity to explore their temporary home on Bear Island in Arctic Circle. What she finds there will change her life. I loved the two main characters in this book - April and the bear. Her curiosity, kindness and empathy lead her to become best friends with the bear and to want to help him find his own kind again. Hannah Gold has a deft and gentle touch as the relationship between the two develops, and April finds a way to communicate with this huge, beautiful but lost animal. Pivotal to the story is the reality of climate change and effect it's having firstly on the polar bear population, and on the planet as a whole. April knows she has to do something, and knowing it, she takes action. I wanted to make the read last, but soon I couldn't put it down. This book will remind readers they too can do something, even though climate change is such a massive issue for us all to tackle. I defy you not to be inspired by this wonderful story. Read the book, share it with young friends and family members, and like April, never forget that you too can be part of changing our relationship with the Earth and all its creatures.

I have heard soo many good things about this book and primary schools are now using it within their literacy topics. So here I am reading the book and see where it takes me! I’m about 100 pages into the book and I’m finding the story very interesting. The one thing that has grabbed my attention is April and her dads relationship. I feel dad needs to continue with his life and try and be the best parent for April as upsetting as it is losing a loved one life does go on but your daughter will forever have these memories and emotions with you. This book is so important for children to learn about climate change and what is happening to our world currently. It really does put in perspective what animals are going through and the sacrifices they are making as the world is getting hotter. It makes me sad that we still live in this world where these problems are still arising and need to be taken head on for a big impact. P.S it does have a happy ending!

A lovely story, bought for my then 8 year old and she enjoyed reading it. (Her reading age is roughly 11 but I’d say ages 9 and up would be fine with it) It’s well written and flows well and was challenging in a good way (I.e. some new words to learn but not too many to ruin it).

Excellent

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My nine year old son said this is the best book he's ever read.

My 10 year old daughter and I loved this for a read out loud. She is pretty picky about what will keep her engaged, but I was surprised at how much she connected with the characters in the book. The adventure and anticipation kept her engaged, but without any scary things that would cause her anxiety in the real world. I’ve been trying more adventurous books with her since this and having fun finding new genres for her.