The Boy, the Father, and the Bear

A wild bear becomes a replacement father figure for the child at the center of Gustavsson’s thoughtful, fairy tale–like telling, whose tone recalls Randall Jarrell’s The Animal Family. The work unfolds in four parts, beginning with a classic opening: “Once upon a time, a boy lived with his father where the forest and the blue sea met,” aware of the bears and sharks that share their home. Over time, the parent ages, eventually turning into a tree in whose branches the protagonist takes refuge during an arbor-uprooting storm. After a bear climbs aboard the now floating tree and the two eventually emerge from the water intact, the pair slowly form a relationship that mirrors the one the youth had with his father. Scribble-shaded monochrome illustrations appear on text-facing pages, with different hues signaling new chapters. The result is a timeless-feeling story of growth in the face of inevitable change. Human characters’ skin tones echo the pages’ background hues. Ages 8–12. (May)