There Will Be Bears

Starred review from February 17, 2014
Debut novelist Gebhart reveals an uncanny knack for getting inside the brain of a teenage boy wrestling with changing relationships and an onslaught of disappointments. Thirteen-year-old Tyson’s onetime best friend is spending all his time with his football teammates, but that’s nothing compared to Tyson’s fury when his parents cancel his much-anticipated elk-hunting trip with his grandfather, due to Gramps’s health and grizzly bear attacks in Bridger-Teton National Forest. Gebhart gives readers lots to chew on, including Tyson’s realization that life isn’t fair, his recognition of Gramps’s frailty, and lingering questions about manhood. Will killing an elk, even if it means lying to his parents, make Tyson a man? (And can he remain a member of the Taylor Swift fan club?) Graphic hunting and field-dressing details may be eye-opening for readers who, like Tyson, have only hunted with a video-game controller so far. Fully developed characters, complex and realistic relationships (especially between Tyson and Gramps), and Tyson’s spot-on narrative voice—which balances faux bravado, risqué humor, and real emotional pain—make this story stand out. Ages 10–up. Agent: John M. Cusick, Scott Treimel NY.

June 1, 2014

Gr 5-8-Since his dad lost his job, 13-year-old Tyson has been living with his parents and younger sister in his Gramps's house in Colorado. The two are unusually close, which is a source of stability for Tyson as he makes his way through the tough changes in his life-shifting family dynamics; the drifting away of his childhood best friend Brighton, who plays football now and runs with the popular crowd; and a first attempt at romance with new girl Karen. Then Gramps has to move to an assisted-living facility three hours away because his health is failing, which means a promised elk-hunting trip in the Grand Tetons is in jeopardy. Not to mention there's a malicious grizzly on the loose in the area. So the two concoct a lie about camping in Idaho in order to convince Tyson's dad to give him permission for what will most likely be Gramps's last hunting trip. Tyson's narration lends immediacy to the emotional development but can lapse into throwaway colloquialism ("I'm all whatever about it" or "I go, 'Yeah'"). The scenes surrounding the hunt and an encounter with the grizzly are the most dynamic in the book. It's here that the story really begins to grip. These depictions are not for every reader, though. The description of Tyson learning to field dress an elk is detailed and gory. Nonetheless, this should be an easy sell to younger middle schoolers, especially where hunting is a popular activity.-Bob Hassett, Luther Jackson Middle School, Falls Church, VA

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2014
Feeling abandoned by his two closest companions, 13-year-old Tyson just wants things to go back to normal--even if that means field dressing his own elk and fighting off a man-eating grizzly bear. When Tyson's best friend, Bright, decides he would rather hang out with the cool kids, Tyson reasons that he still has his grandfather for companionship. But when his grandfather Gene moves into a nursing home and Tyson's parents cancel their big hunting trip, it is almost more than Tyson can handle. With social pressures to fit in mounting and grades rapidly sinking, things are becoming desperate. Suddenly, the hunting trip is as much about saving himself as it is about taking down a six-point bull elk. Tyson is quirky, awkward and lovable; a perfect middle school boy. He is also, at times, laugh-out-loud funny, but his best qualities are his fierce love for his family and his unwavering desire to be true to himself. It is this inner strength that carries the story through some eyebrow-raising moments. While honesty is emphasized, the lies surrounding the secret hunting trip are brushed aside as necessary for the greater good. Occasionally salty vocabulary and adolescent innuendo are developmentally spot-on. A quirky, sweet adventure for middle school boys. (Fiction. 12-14)

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April 15, 2014
Grades 5-8 Thirteen-year-old Tyson is having a rough year. His best friend ditched him for the popular crowd and a girlfriend, and now the hunting trip he and his grandpa have been planningthe trip that will prove he is a manmay get canceled. And all because of a few grizzly bear attacks! When Tyson begins to suspect that there may be something wrong with Grandpa Gene, he gets angry with his family for treating him like a child and keeping him in the dark. Gebhart's debut depicts the anger and emotion of adolescence without the angst; Tyson remains a likable oddball throughout. Unapologetic in his love of bears, Taylor Swift, and having his grandpa as his BFF, Tyson's eccentricities serve both as strengths and challenges as he matures. What results is a compelling and heartfelt story with just the right amount of humor. This should appeal to fans of Jordan Sonnenblick and to middle-school boys in general. And don't worry, there will, in fact, be bears.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)