GARDEN OF THE SPIRIT BEAR

Above Vancouver Island on the Western coast of Canada lies a northern rainforest Patent calls “the garden of the bears.” Nearly 200 inches of rain falls every year here, nourishing huge red cedars, Douglas firs, and other towering ancient trees. Among the many animals that make the rainforest their home are the Spirit Bears, creamy white non-albino variations of the black bear. The area is threatened by clear-cut logging; some, but not all, has recently been put into conservancy. Patent’s gently unfolding exposition makes a convincing argument why the land should be protected—to save the bears, but also the entire intertwined ecosystem and to ultimately benefit humankind. Milton’s dappled watercolors evoke the colors and beauty of the area with a full-page painting per topic and either a spot or sometimes a continuation of the painting on the facing page of text. As always with Patent, a worthwhile purchase, carefully presented. (resources) (Nonfiction. 7-10)