Touching Spirit Bear

By: Ben Mikaelsen

Narrated by: Lee Tergesen

Length: 5 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's Summary

Within Cole Matthews lies anger, rage, and hate. Cole has been stealing and fighting for years. This time he caught Peter Driscal in the parking lot and smashed his head against the sidewalk. Now, Peter may have permanent brain damage - and Cole is in the biggest trouble of his life.

Cole receives a one-year banishment to a remote Alaskan island. There, he is mauled by a mysterious white bear of Native American legend. Hideously injured, Cole waits for death. His thoughts shift from anger to humility. To survive, he must stop blaming others and take responsibility for his life. Rescuers arrive to save Cole's body, but it is the attack of the Spirit Bear that may save his soul.

©2005 Ben Mikaelsen; 2007 Listening Library

My 6th grader is reading this with her class...

I rarely give reviews on the books that I read. When my 6th grader told me her teacher was reading a book that described one child bashing another's head into the pavement and eating live mice, I was bothered. after reading this book I have more respect for our teachers and the literature they pick to share with our children. this book created some interesting dialogue between me and my 6th grader regarding how many kids she passes in the hallway that might be dealing with the same anger this character deals with. I strongly recommend any parent to read this with their sixth grader.

a heart for kids in trouble

This book was introduced to me by a teen patient in my pediatrics office as mandatory reading in his high school English class and the concept of tribal justice dispatching a teen to an island to fend for himself was fascinating. But I could not put it down. It is a story of redemption at a gut wrenching level of self discovery.

AWESOME!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Very much worth listening too! Story drew me in and makes you think of other ways to heal!!

Amazing Book

In my 8th grade English class, we read and listened to the audio. I was so into the story, and the character development. This book has a clear message that it’s trying to get across, and it works really well. I like how Lee Tergesen used different voices for the different characters, it really made them more believable. In conclusion I recommend this book to anyone who needs a good read with an engaging story. :)

Phenominal Book!

This is a young adult book that I read with my class, however, I have listened to it several times on my own. It is appealing to all ages, especially if you are curious about bullys and juvenile delinquents and why they act the way they do. It is touching and spiritual on many levels. It helps us to understand why children act out, what makes them appear to be so angry, and what experiences might change them. I highly recommend this book for pre-teens/teens and adults alike.

Great Book, Great Message!

A bookseller recommended this book to me and I was pleasantly surprised by it! It’s filled with a lot of heart and wisdom.

Life-changing ideas and concepts.

I first read this book in middle school right around the time of the main character's age. Now, 15 years later, I listened to it and realized that it had a profound impact on my personality and view of the world. It showed me I could be at peace, even in the most turbulent life situations. I highly recommend this to anyone who feels that they are angry in life.

great

this is one of the most amazing and touching books I've listened to. read it

Great family book!

Very visual in description. We loved this story and will never forget the life lesson it taught is.

Use at 0.5x plz

It is a good book but is even better at 0.5x speed it is just hilariously funny