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The Salmon Bears by Ian McAllister and Nicholas Read

The Salmon Bears by Ian McAllister and Nicholas Read


Extensively illustrated with Ian McAllister's photographs, The Salmon Bearsexplores the delicate balance that exists between the grizzly, black and spirit bears that inhabit the last great wilderness along the central coast of British Columbia and their natural environment. Key to this relationship are the salmon that are born in the rivers each spring, who then go out to sea as juveniles and return as adults to spawn and die, completing a cycle of life that ensures the survival of not only their own species but also virtually every other plant and animal in the rainforest.

In clear language suitable for young readers, the authors describe the day-to-day activities that define the lives of these bears through the four seasons. But this is also very much the story of the Great Bear Rainforest-a vast tract of land that stretches from the northern tip of Vancouver Island to the Alaska border and contains some of the largest stands of old-growth forest left on the West Coast. The Salmon Bears focuses on the interconnectedness of all life in the rainforest and makes a strong case for the importance of protecting this vital ecological resource. 

Author royalties will be fully donated to bear conservation efforts on the BC coast.

The Salmon Bears Reviews

"The Salmon Bears is a thoroughly enjoyable and enlightening read.  The text's kid-friendly, informal tone helps steer the way through a mass of information that otherwise might be overwhelming.  It's brimming with fascinating facts, such as that mother bears will eat their cub's waste, that a spirit bear is actually a black bear with white fur, and that bears rub their scent on trees in order to keep track of each other.   The Salmon Bears shines a spotlight on a precious national treasure and makes an impassioned case for protecting its future." 

Quill and Quire, June 2010

The Salmon Bears has been nominated for a variety of awards:

  • CYBIL award in the Young adult/non-fiction category, 2010
  • Silver Birch Award, which is a children’s choice award through the Ontario Library Association’s Forest of Reading program.
  • The Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize, a category of the BC Book Prize, 2011.

By authors Ian McAllister and Nicholas Read 
Images by: Ian McAllister 
Illustrations by: Martin Campbell
ISBN: 9781554692057
Publisher: Orca Book Publishers