THE POLAR BEAR IN THE GARDEN

The tale of an unusual rewilding.

On Monday, a child with brown hair and tan skin finds a polar bear so small that the child can hold it in their hands. Each day the bear grows a bit bigger so that by Wednesday, the child decides the time has come to take him home. They raise anchor and set sail in a little brown boat with red sails. Each day the bear grows a bit larger and they grow closer until at last, on Sunday, the bear quite dwarfs the boat and they make it to land. There, child, bear, and the bear’s new family romp and play until nighttime arrives and the child must say farewell. With hints of Judith Kerr’s The Tiger Who Came to Tea (1968) and a boat that Max from Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are (1963) might envy, the book is awash in the best kind of wish fulfillment and sleepy storytelling. What could be better than a small child taking charge of something as large and imposing as a polar bear? Yet readers never for a moment doubt the possibility. Joyous art, celebrating freedom and the beauty of the sea, matches the text in tone and quality. Be ready for children to scour their own gardens in the hopes of finding a tiny bear of their very own. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

As satisfying as a warm blanket or a cup of cocoa.