The Escaped Bear
About this ebook
Mala doesn’t want to go to school. Not since her best friend moved away. So one morning she hatches a sneaky plan to ditch school and escape to the beach. She’ll hop on the cable car and be right on her way.
The last thing Mala expects to see is a bear. That talks.
Turns out, the bear has a plan of his own: to see the famous sights of their famous city. But when his map flies away, Mala offers to help. She’s never met a talking bear before! Maybe she can show him around and still get to the beach. Little does she know, Sun Bright Zoo is on the lookout for an escaped bear, with a gaggle of experts on the trail: a cop, detective, bear keeper, and even a clown. Not only that, Mala’s parents learn she’s missing from school and are desperate to find her.
With so many people closing in, will Mala make it to the beach and the bear see his fill? Can a girl and a bear be friends, and outwit them all? One thing is for sure: Mala is having the time of her life and never wants it to end. Braving steep streets and rocky shores, she and the bear discover that friendship is the boat that carries them through laughter, loss, and change.
The Escaped Bear is a charming and hopeful story with stunning black-and-white interior illustrations throughout about making friends and saying goodbye, and how hello might be waiting for you around the corner.
Discover more
About the author
Sheela Chari is the author of several critically acclaimed novels, including Karthik Delivers, an NEA Read Across America book, and The Unexplainable Disappearance of Mars Patel series, based on the Peabody Award-winning mystery podcast. Her other titles include Finding Mighty, a Children's Choice Award finalist, and Vanished, an APALA Children’s Literature Honor Book and Edgar Award finalist. Sheela holds an MFA from New York University and is on faculty in Vermont College of Fine Arts MFA Program in Writing for Children and Young Adults. You can find Sheela online at sheelachari.com.
Born during a blizzard on Groundhog Day in Chicago, Illinois, Stephanie Graegin spent her childhood drawing and collecting fauna in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Houston, Texas. She received her BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland. She later attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, obtaining an MFA in printmaking. Stephanie now lives in Brooklyn, is still drawing, and has managed to keep her collection down to one orange cat. Find out more at www.graegin.com.