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Tyson is determined to hunt an elk - even if it means sneaking his grandpa out of a nursing home - in a debut novel sparked with dry wit and wilderness adventure.
Thirteen-year-old Tyson loves hanging out with his roughneck Grandpa Gene, who's a lot more fun than Tyson's ex–best friend, Brighton. These days, Bright just wants to be seen with the cool jocks who make fun of Tyson's Taylor Swift obsession and dorky ways. So when Grandpa Gene has to move to a nursing home that can manage his kidney disease, Tyson feels like he's losing his only friend. Not only that, but Tyson was counting on Grandpa Gene to take him on his first big hunt. So in defiance of Mom and Dad's strict orders, and despite reports of a scary, stalking, man-eating grizzly named Sandy, the two sneak off to the Grand Tetons.
Yes, there will be action, like shooting and dressing a six-hundred-pound elk. Is Tyson tough enough? There will be heart-pounding suspense: is Grandpa Gene too sick to handle the hunt, miles away from help? And, oh yes, there will be bears....
"Starred Review. Fully developed characters, complex and realistic relationships... and Tyson's spot-on narrative voice - which balances faux bravado, risqué humor, and real emotional pain - make this story stand out. Ages 9-12." - Publishers Weekly
"Occasionally salty vocabulary and adolescent innuendo are developmentally spot-on. A quirky, sweet adventure for middle school boys." - Kirkus
"Gebhart crafts a satisfyingly complicated realistic drama that deals with big issues. ... Tyson is a likable protagonist in a well-paced tale that will hold young readers in its grip." - The Horn Book
This information about There Will Be Bears was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Ryan Gebhart says of There Will Be Bears, his first novel, "This book was inspired by a gig working at a hunting ranch in the Grand Tetons, where I got firsthand experience in field dressing an elk." Ryan Gebhart lives in Ohio.
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