"It seemed to be just one episode of a longer story so it didn't have a proper beginning or ending, it was all just part of the middle. There was no way of knowing what had gone on before or what would happen after. And, actually, the boy didn't have much of a clue about what was going on now." Is it possible to write a simple, abstract fable largely about a character being bored that is not itself boring? That's the question I kept asking myself as I read this book. For a large part of the story nothing much happens, just the boy sitting in the boat with nothing to do while the bear contentedly rows, sleeps, eats, and has tea. There was no explanation for this situation and no conclusion, it just is. Yet something kept me captivated and reading. And that's not the entire story--there is a plot and eventful things do happen--but it's largely a story of isolation and inactivity. Part Zen, part Existentialism, and part Joe Versus the Volcano. It's not the kind of story you can really think about or analyze, it's one you feel; I don't know what I liked about it or why, but I did. And that's enough.

A book stuffed full of morals and lessons and pictures. It was quite a bit like Avi's The End of the Beginning. I preferred that to this.

It's brilliant and flawed and pretty much the most interesting chapter book fare for children you'll read this year, even when it strikes you as dull. One thing's for certain. There is nothing else quite like it on your library or bookstores shelves.