Touching Spirit Bear

By Ben Mikaelsen

Genre: Fiction

My rating: 4 1/2 stars

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

     Cole is offered Circle Justice: a system based on Native American traditions that attempts to provide healing for the criminal offender, the victim and the, community.  Cole receives a one-year banishment to a remote Alaskan island. There, he is mauled by mysterious white bear of Native American legend. Hideously injured, as Cole waits for his death his thoughts shift from from anger to humility. To survive, he must stop blaming others and take responsibility for his life. "

Summary taken from Goodreads.com

Wow.  This book was awesome.  I'll admit the scene where the bear mauls Cole is a little bit graphic.   But I think the story was well done, though I did think it got a little slow towards the end.

Cole is an interesting character.  He's such an angry kid that I seriously was asking him "What's your problem?!?"  But as the story unfolds, you learn more about why he is that way.  And after the bear attack, you can't help hoping he comes out ok-physically and emotionally.

This book had some great lessons about letting go of your anger, about the beauty of nature, of forgiveness and growing up and so much more.  And I learned a lot about the Circle Justice system, Native American traditions, totem poles, the rare spirit bear, etc.  A very interesting read!