The Girl who Speaks Bear

Great fantasy coming-of-age story that follows the footsteps of Hobbit and the like in its journey that is more about the friends we make along the way than the destination.

A magical, deeply comforting, and beautiful quest narrative steeped in traditional Slavic folklore. It is a magnificent class read-aloud or guided reading selection for KS2 (specifically Years 4 - 6), offering an elite blueprint for exploring identity, community, and the oral tradition of storytelling.

My favourite character was mousetrap and the house with chicken legs. I Love and all the stories Stories. my Favorite Part Was when yanka found who her Parents were and when They defeated smey

It is the best book I have ever read

The Girl Who Speaks Bear is a magical adventure about a girl named Yanka who feels different from everyone else in her village. One day, she discovers a clue about her mysterious past and sets off on a journey through forests and mountains to find out who she really is.

I enjoyed this book because it is full of adventure, friendship, and magic. Yanka is a brave and determined character, and her journey is exciting and inspiring. Along the way, she meets fascinating people and creatures who help her learn more about herself.

The story is based on folklore and legends, which makes the magical world feel rich and interesting. The descriptions are beautiful, and the book encourages readers to think about identity, family, and belonging.

I would recommend this book to children who enjoy fantasy, myths, and adventurous stories with strong characters. It is a heart warming and imaginative tale that keeps readers interested from beginning to end.

It was interesting

I loved it, I would definitely recommend it

Yanka. she turned into a bear ran away from her adopted mum. She saw her grandma in the bear cave then turned into a bear and she fought against the dragon called smey.

I don't normally go for these almost fantasy style books, but I loved it. Some really heart warming and useful life lessons for the children, whilst being an exciting adventure. I couldn't wait to pick it up again each evening.

It might have been one of the best books I have ever read, I highly recommend it to older readers.

I thought that this book was amazing because it's shifts between normal life and complete randomness! Sophie Anderson is a great author and is great at descriptive books, so I highly reccomend this book!

It’s really dangerous and exciting.

This story is about Yanka, a girl found in a bear cave, who wonders where she has come from, and who are her family. The story details her search for answers, and her adventures along the way. A lovely tale, filled with interesting characters she meets during her journey. A heartwarming story.

A fascinating book, about stories which sound unbelievable, but in fact are pieces of a jigsaw puzzle which all fits together perfectly at the end.
It also has a message about how we should care and respect each other.

The Girl who Speaks Bear I would recommend to anyone. It is about the lovely nature around us.

Yanka, who lives with her foster mum, Momoka, goes to a snow festival where she falls off an ice palace causing her legs to turn into the legs of a bear. Rather than going to the hospital she goes into the woods to find out the truth about her past. She makes lots of new friends including Yuri who is an Elk, Ivan a wold and Elena & Valentina who are human. Mousetrap is her pet weasel who comes with her into the woods.
She has lots of adventures with her friends which lead to her finding out the truth about her past. She eventually goes back to live with Momoka.

I started reading this with my class and I loved reading it so much that I had to finish it by myself.

5 star review

It was a beautiful book about the beauty of the forest and how to find your hearts true purpose

I really enjoyed this book with its link to ancient fairy tales. The house with chicken legs is a character in itself. Yanka's journey is a as much about understanding herself and being comfortable in her own skin, as it is an adventure in the snow forest.

A really nice book about how you can find your place and family by going on big adventures!

A magical tale. Loved how it used story telling to reveal Yanka's past and moved the story forward. Liked the message of team work and the value of friendship/family, however your family is made up.

Adventure and fun!

It is an amazing book

A great mix of mythical, magical and imaginative stories embedded into Yanka's journey of self discovery. Yanka is trying to find out who she is, battling between the magic of the forest and the human world. I really liked how it felt we were part of Yanka's adventure and how the author uses the Chapters to share "Once upon a time..." mini stories which tie together beautifully.

I loved this book because she finally found out about her past but my favourite thing was when she escaped to the forest

This book was Amazing! This book is so amazing and full of interest that even when the vacuum was on I could not hear but the words of the characters. I love all the humor in it and the twists and the emotions of this book. this book is very detailed and is loving. Also it does't end so quick once she is nice, cozy and safe something still happens. My favourite character is the weasel and is named mousetrap for certain reasons. He is the one who makes me laugh the most. I recommend to ages of 9-13 as it is very complex and a little complicated.

This was a very interesting story and one of the longest stories I have ever read. I loved the main character as she wasn’t selfish and loved her family very much and it had very good twists and surprises. It was a great adventure.

Pretto nice

I liked Yanka best because she is very brave. I would recommend this book to people which like adventurous books.

I loved this book! It took me on an exciting journey through places that were familiar but I have never been to them.
The description and pace of the story made me want to just keep reading.
I highly recommend this book.

I loved the connection to her first book, and all of the different feelings of Yanka.
Also loved the mini stories.

I thought this was a lovely story. It explored friendship, sadness, identity and so much more. Yanka is a wonderful female protagonist.