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A mesmerizing novel of two sisters whose lives are upended by an unexpected visitor—a tale of family, obsession, and a mysterious creature in the woods, by the celebrated, bestselling author of Disappearing Earth
They were sisters and they would last past the end of time.
Sam and Elena dream of another life. On the island off the coast of Washington where they were born and raised, they and their mother struggle to survive. Sam works on the ferry that delivers wealthy mainlanders to their vacation homes while Elena bartends at the local golf club, but even together they can't earn enough to get by, stirring their frustration about the limits that shape their existence.
Then one night on the boat, Sam spots a bear swimming the dark waters of the channel. Where is it going? What does it want? When the bear turns up by their home, Sam, terrified, is more convinced than ever that it's time to leave the island. But Elena responds differently to the massive beast. Enchanted by its presence, she throws into doubt the desire to escape and puts their long-held dream in danger.
A story about the bonds of sisterhood and the mysteries of the animals that live among us—and within us—Bear is a propulsive, mythical, richly imagined novel from one of the most acclaimed young writers in America.
"Beautiful and haunting ... this is brilliant." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A bold and brilliant modern fable of sisterhood, class, and our relationship to the natural world." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"By focusing on the characters' relationships with one another, Phillips brings complicated, very human characters to life in a tale filled with sadness. Literary fiction readers looking for complicated family stories will be immersed in the novel's haunting tragedy." —Library Journal
"Bear takes us to a wild, captivating place, just as Phillips did in her debut, Disappearing Earth." —BookPage
"Phillips is brilliant at balancing sharply drawn characters with finely woven plot and unnerving atmosphere." —Lit Hub
"Mythical and enchanting, Phillips's second novel delves into sisterhood and the mysteries of the animals that live among—and within—us all." —Oprah Daily (One of the Most Anticipated Books of 2024)
"Intense, moody, fierce, and relentlessly suspenseful, Bear is a modern-day fairy tale about the tenacious bonds and complexities of sisterhood. Readers will fall in love with these enchanting characters, as I did, and root for them to the breathtaking end." —Angie Kim, bestselling author of Happiness Falls and Miracle Creek
"Bear is a story of life on the margins—economically and geographically—of the American project, exploring the bonds of family and the warped relationship between humans and the natural world. There is something unsettling and uncanny about Julia Phillips's wondrous second book, less a novel than a fairy tale for the strange times in which we live." —Rumaan Alam, bestselling author of Leave the World Behind, finalist for the National Book Award
"Bear is the brutal cage of the real world and the magical animal within. Julia Phillips has written a book of untamed, glorious, abundant interpretations." —Megha Majumdar, bestselling author of A Burning
This information about Bear was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Julia Phillips is the bestselling author of the novel Disappearing Earth, which was a finalist for the National Book Award and one of The New York Times Book Review's 10 Best Books of the Year. A 2024 Guggenheim fellow, she lives with her family in Brooklyn.
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