Smokey Bear: The Cub Who Left His Pawprints on History

by Karen Signell

This is the first novel written about the real bear cub who survived a forest fire high in the New Mexican mountains to become the living representative of his namesake, the icon Smokey Bear, famous for preserving wildlife and wilderness.As the story opens, the runt of a black bear litter witnesses a mountain lion’s attack on his littermates. Despite this trauma, the cub is rambunctious enough to venture out of his mother’s den and risk attack by an adult male bear.His early days learning how to make a good life for himself in the wilderness are abruptly ended when a horrendous forest fire rages over the mountain. The cub uses his wits to endure the fire but is left badly burned, alone and forlorn amidst the devastation.Without quite knowing why, a game warden, Ray Bell, feels compelled to break the rules and rescue the orphaned animal. It’s nip and tuck whether he will live, but a vet’s ministrations and the loving care of Ray’s tender-hearted family heal the little fellow’s wounds. In the warden’s Santa Fe household, the young bear clowns around with the cocker spaniel puppy Jet and cuddles with Ray’s wife and four-year-old daughter, but, mistaking Ray’s changing of bandages as cruelty, the cub repeatedly lies in wait to bite his benefactor.Ray, knowing the bear will soon become powerful enough to be dangerous, conspires with local officials to find the best possible place for him. The family reluctantly says goodbye and the little bear is flown across the country to Washington’s National Zoo. There he becomes the living symbol of the famous icon Smokey Bear.How does this intelligent wild bear manage life in captivity?Authentic photographs and apt quotations enhance this heartwarming and bittersweet story, written for adults but with appeal for all ages.During his long life in the zoo, Smokey was visited by millions of people and his personal sacrifice was credited with drastically reducing accidental wildfires.

ebook

First published August 21, 2014

Reviews

[Viga Boland · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's rare to come away from a 500-page book wanting more, not because the story hasn't been perfectly executed, but because the reader wants to sustain the feelings of sheer pleasure she/he felt while reading. That's how I felt reading "Smokey Bear" by Karen Signell. What a brilliant writer! What a beautiful story.

Using sustained personification to cleverly combine fact and fiction, Karen Signell has breathed life into the little bear cub who survived the horrendous fires that ripped through the 17,000 acres of Lincoln National Forest in 1950. The fire claimed the lives of Smokey's fictional mama bear, Gersa, and hundreds of other animals. Rescued by those dangerous two-legged creatures known as humans, tiny Smokey was nursed back to health and became one of America's most beloved icons, reminding all that "only you can prevent wildfires".

What makes "Smokey the Bear" by By Karen Signell so charming is the utterly believable human-like characterization of Smokey and his friends: Strut, the talkative crow; Lightning, the striped cat who desperately wants a good home with some loving humans; Dazzle, the pompous know-it-all peacock and Freddie the extortionist rat, just to name a few.

But most of all it's Smokey with whom the reader identifies: we ache with his longing for his mama and the forest he remembers; we feel his desperation for wanting to escape the caged confines of the zoo where he lives out his life of 26 years. We know the feeling of wishing we could see old friends, of being bored with routines, of craving excitement in the everyday humdrum. Smokey is so human, we want to give him a great big hug. How has Karen Signell made him so loveable that we come away wanting more?

You will have to read "Smokey the Bear" to answer that question. Is it a book for children? It's a book for the child inside each of us, a book for any age group. As well as in our home and public libraries, "Smokey the Bear" belongs in school classrooms. In fact, Signell provides questions at the end of the book that will aid teachers and students in the discussion of not just the historical facts surrounding Smokey's story, or issues like animals being kept in zoos, but the exploration of the entire process of being young and growing older.

"Smokey the Bear" by Karen Signell is a thought-provoking and unforgettable blend of fact and fiction that will touch hearts through its brilliant characterization. Thorough research, archived photos, lists of resources and even a look into how Signell came to write "Smokey the Bear complete the book. But it is Smokey's life journey that will pawprints on readers' hearts. Brilliant writing and highly recommended.

Viga Boland
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[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice balance between fact and fiction. Great character development, especially in the crow Strut.

[Renae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never thought I'd cry because of a book about Smokey Bear; yet, here we are.

This furry guy certainly left his paw-prints on history, as well as my heart.