BEAR NECESSITY

A London widower who is having trouble supporting his son turns to dancing as a panda in the park.

With the unexpected death of his wife in her late 20s, Danny Malooley has been slowly falling further and further behind on his rent. Young parents at 17, Danny and Liz were very much in love and delighted in their son, Will, even though they struggled to make ends meet as he grew up. Fourteen months after Liz’s death, however, Danny finds himself with an 11-year-old son who hasn’t spoken since the accident, so far behind on his rent that his landlord has threatened to break his legs if he doesn’t pay up, unfairly fired from his construction job, and grasping at any opportunity to make money. The realization that street performers in the park earn enough to cover his rent spurs his decision to buy a deeply discounted panda costume all but destroyed by the hard-partying college student who last rented it. Standing in the park in a smelly costume does not garner the money he’d hoped—though, shock of shocks, his son actually starts talking after Danny saves him from bullies—so he decides to start dancing in the costume. And after a chance encounter with Krystal, a pole-dancer (a near-naked performer, not a stripper, she is keen to make clear), who subsequently makes fun of his lack of skills, Danny convinces her to teach him to dance so he can try to win a street performance competition with a purse so large he’ll be able to pay off his evil landlord. The platonic relationship between Danny and Krystal is refreshing. The story hinges on the fast friendships formed on construction sites, between street performers, and in strip clubs—the latter reminiscent of the movie Magic Mike but without even a hint of voyeurism.

A well-written, speedy read that focuses on the love between a dad and his son and how it can lead to friendship.