THE QUEST BEGINS

Once upon a time there were three bears—cubs who live completely separate lives until various tragedies cause their paths to intersect. Gentle, loving Kallik, a polar bear, lives with her family until a disastrously early spring thaw leads to her mother’s death. Lusa, a bright and curious black bear, finds her adventurous spirit confined by the zoo where she lives. Toklo, a rebellious grizzly, longs to be independent while hampered by his sickly brother and despairing mother. Then there is Ujurak, who looks like a bear cub (sometimes), but might be something else entirely. Drawn by the beckoning North Star, each sets off on a journey to the unknown. As in her immensely popular Warriors series, Hunter creates a richly sensuous world filled with cruelty, beauty, tenderness, savagery and just enough underlying legendary background to add mystery. Unfortunately, so much effort goes into developing characters and settings that the plot barely gets into motion by the last page. Still, fans of animal fantasies will adore the careful attention to detail, and will haunt the shelves for the next volume. (Fantasy. 10-14)