The girl who speaks bear

Sophie Anderson

Book - 2020

Found abandoned in a bear cave as a baby, and cursed with unusual size and strength, twelve-year-old Yanka the bear has never felt she belonged in the small village where she grew up; the Snow Forest seems to call to her and when she wakes up one day with her legs transformed into bear legs she flees the village, and embarks on a dangerous journey to uncover clues to her mysterious origin and identity.

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Subjects
Genres
Action and adventure fiction
Published
New York : Scholastic Press 2020.
Language
English
Main Author
Sophie Anderson (author)
Edition
First US edition
Physical Description
286 pages : map ; 22 cm
ISBN
9781338580839
Contents unavailable.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Called Yanka the Bear due to her strength and height, 12-year-old Yanka feels othered by denizens of her forest-side village, more spectacle than girl. She lives with her foster mother, herbalist Mamochka, who found her outside a bear cave as a rosy-cheeked two-year-old and took her in, and she finds comfort in the magical tales shared by Anatoly, a kind recluse with burn scars who visits when his travels in the Snow Forest allow. One day, Yanka awakens to find that she can speak to animals and that her legs have transformed into bear legs; she begins to wonder if Anatoly's fantastical stories of transformations, bear royalty, and ursine souls might be true, and whether they might offer real answers to her own peculiar past. A gem of a fairy tale, Anderson's sophomore effort offers a dynamic, memorable cast with rich personalities amid lasting messages about belonging, graceful acceptance of aid, and the power of stories. Ages 8--12. Agent: Gemma Cooper, the Bent Agency. (Mar.)

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Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 4--6--Once upon a time on the very edge of the Snow Forest, a girl named Yanka yearned to know the truth about her past. Found as a baby in the cave of a great bear, she has lived most of her life in the home of her lovingly protective Mamochka and their inquisitive house weasel, Mousetrap, with the occasional visit from the storyteller Anatoly, who lives in the Snow Forest. When she falls during one of her village's festivals and awakens with the legs of a bear, Yanka knows that the time has come for her to head into the forest for answers. Accompanied by Mousetrap and a host of other friends she meets along the way, Yanka finds more than she bargained for, but she may have to lose just as much. This whimsical story is intricately woven with Russian folklore. The charming writing will instantly transport readers directly into the Snow Forest. Tackling themes of home, family, belonging, and the importance of storytelling, this is a great classroom or family read-aloud and book club choice. Pairing the text with Sophie Anderson's The House with Chicken Legs will add a layer of context and depth to the world and certain characters. VERDICT Hand this wonderfully crafted tale to fans of books like Kelly Barnhill's The Girl Who Drank the Moon, as well as lovers of myths and fairy tales.--India Winslow, Cary Memorial Library, Lexington, MA

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

A young girl who was found as a toddler outside a bear's den finds that her connection with bears runs deep. The villagers call her "Yanka the Bear," she explains, because of her foundling past but also because she towers over the other 12-year-olds "like a cuckoo chick in a nest of wrens." Though her foster mother is loving, and though Sasha, her best friend, is clearly devoted to her, Yanka feels that something is missing from her life and that she doesn't truly belong. Yanka impulsively leaves her home the morning after the festival celebrating Winter's end when she awakes to find her legs transformed into those of a bear. The forest draws her, and she can suddenly understand what some of the forest creatures are saying to her. She rescues a young elk from the icy river and encounters a Yaga and a house on chicken legs just when she needs help. Yanka and her companions in adventure retell the stories told by a woodsman who frequently visited Yanka and her mother, revealing truths about Yanka's enchanted past. Anderson's tale draws themes and inspiration from Russian fairy tales, deftly weaving the threads of these magical stories into Yanka's adventure and evoking the folklore, music, art, and customs of the Eastern European north. The Russian/European setting suggests that the human characters are white. Marvelously charmed and charming. (Fantasy. 9-13) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.