Great Bear Rainforest: A Giant-Screen Adventure in the Land of the Spirit Bear

This beautifully photographed book, a companion to the IMAX documentary Great Bear Rainforest: In the Land of the Spirit Bear, provides a window into a unique wilderness area located between Alaska and Vancouver Island. The spirit bear—“the expression of a rare recessive gene among black bears”—is one of several species featured in wildlife photographs. Others include coastal wolves, whales, pink salmon, and sea lions. Sidebars provide scientific insights into particular species and into the broader ecosystem of forest and sea. The authors also detail the film’s making with photos of camera crew capturing shots and descriptions of day-to-day challenges (“It was a lot of work for Ian to get a shot of sea lions hunting the herring”). The photo-heavy format provides a sense of immediacy, conveying the authors’ impassioned respect for the pristine region. Ages 9–12. (Feb.)