There Will Be Bears

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. (Apr.)