Bear in the Family By: Eric Walters

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Age Recommendation: Grade 2-4

"Bear in the Family" is a Silver Birch Express 2023 nominee.  This is the story of a family returning to their home after being evacuated because of a forest fire.  Fortunately, their home, which was designed with forest fires in mind, remains.  When checking on a neighbour's home, they find a lone bear cub.  The family brings the cub home and contacts animal rescue.  With the forest fire creating a number of displaced animals, the family agrees to care for the cub for a couple of weeks.  The students who read this book enjoyed the story and the book won the Silver Birch Express award.  I personally, can see the appeal of this story, but do not entirely agree with the way the story was written. The family allowed a bear cub with sharp claws and teeth to roam around their home.  The author does have a note at the back explaining that wild animals are not to be approached, but I feel like the story could have handled this in a more realistic way.