The Woman and Her Bear Cub

Based on a well-known Inuit traditional story, this beautifully illustrated picture book by Inuktitut linguist Jaypeetee Arnakak teaches the power of unconditional love. When a mother and daughter find a polar bear cub alone on the sea ice, the daughter cannot bear to leave it behind. Finding no mother bear in sight, the two adopt the cub and raise it as the girl’s brother. The cub and the girl become fast friends—even if the cub’s bear sense of smell always means he wins at hide-and-seek! The cub hunts for the community, and they never want for food. But the cub continues to grow, and eventually he is no longer a fuzzy little cub, but a powerful full-grown bear. Some in the community become fearful of the bear, but the girl and her mother love him just the same. That is, until one day, the bear returns from a hunt with another bear by his side. The mother soon learns that they need to let the cub go, in order for him to live the happy life they want for him.