Touching Spirit Bear

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Summary: Review on "Touching Spirit Bear" by Malissa Rich
Review: "Touching Spirit Bear" is a book about a very angry and abused fifteen year old boy who is facing a prison sentence for attacking and injuring a fellow nineth-grader. While waiting for the courts decision Cole, the boy, was kept in a detention center. During his stay in the detention center he was asked to apply for circle justice. After all of the arrangements were made Cole was sent to live by himself on an island off the coast of Alaska for a year.His stay on the island was cut short by a near death experience that some how made Cole realize what life had to offer and wanted to change. Cole was given a second chance. Cole takes this opportunity and this time and uses it by helping himself and Peter, the boy he beat up. I hope there is a sequeal

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Summary: Touching Spirit Bear
Review: Touching Spirit Bear is about a troubled 15-year old boy named Cole. His parents are alcoholics and abuse him. After he hurts Pete, he is sent to a remote island in Alaska. He has a near death experience and realizes all the things he did wrong in his life. I read the whole book in 4 1/2 hours nonstop. I think this book not only shows how Cole changed but it shows how people with many troubles can change. I think this book shows a valuable lesson about life. I would recommend it to anyone who likes to read about adventure, courage, and life. This book definitely deserves a five star rating!

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Summary: Bleh. Might have been better if not forced upon
Review: I read this book, and was pretty bored. This kid gets mauled by a big bear, almost dies, and decides to become good. It didn't have any action. I didn't feel like I learned anything from it, or even laughed. But then again, I was forced to read this in school, and dissect it. And that is something I hate. Still, I wouldn't recommend this book, it's boring and the main character is stereotypical.

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Summary: A book review by T.c.
Review: This book is one that everyone should get around to read. It is about a boy named Cole who beats up a kid named peter really bad.Cole has a chane to lower his prison sentence if he goes throught somthing called the circle of justice. The circle justice sends him to an island for a year to help him get rid of his anger problems. One of his counslers tells him about a spirit bear, a large white furred bear on the island. Cole totally ignores what he said and does somthing that will change his life. I liked this book because it teaches you things about life. The story sounds like its only purpose is to tell people somthing. I think when Cole beat up Peter and then had the disablities, I think it relates to saying somthing or doing somthing harmful can hurt that person. If you treat someone like dirt they feel like it then become it. Somthing else that I liked about the book was that it really described the story. Ben Mikaelsen (the author) tells you every little detail when describing somthing so you can paint a picture to the story. I don't think anyone who hasn't read this book should.

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Summary: Great adventurous,action packed book
Review: Cole is a boy who is angery, defiant, smug--in short, and a bully who pushed himself to the limits. He smashed a classmate named, Peter Driscal's head into the sidewalk to the point of brain damage in. Cole would choose any alternative than to spend a long period of time in a small jail cell. One day the Tlingit Indain parole officer named, Garvey, told cole if he really wanted to change then he can try the Circle of justice, and of course cole took the chance. Unfortunatally he took advantage of it and burned supplies down along with trying to escape the Alaskan Island he was stranded/banished on/to. He saw the spirit bear quiet a number a times and tried to kill it but got mauled and as fate was awaiting him/he awaits his fate and all that turns from anger to huility. cole tries later to help Peter get over his fear. Will cole survive and help Peter get over his fear of Cole? Has Cole changed at all?
I enjoyed this book A LOT because its like a cliffhanging kind of book and i couldn't put it down after one chapter to another. This book has pleanty of description to keep you in suspence, seem like you're actually in the book along with the charactors, and its action packed/adventurous. The author gets to the point where you can imagine very clearly how things are, like its right in front of you and you can feel it. Read it yourself; you'll see that you can't put it down for on second. This is a great book for people who like action, a little mystery, cliffhanging, adventurous books.

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Summary: Wow! This book is really amazing!
Review: Touching Spirit Bear is one of the best books I have ever read. It all starts out with a juvenile delinquent who brakes into a store. He was bragging about it in school and a guy named Peter tells on him. After school Peter is badly beaten, he was punched many times and had his head smashed into the concrete. This causes Peter to have brain damage. Then Peter's parents sued Cole for the damage.
Cole isn't a very good kid. He seems to think that everything is below him and he is the dominant person of all the creatures on the earth. Cole really doesn't want to go to jail for the bad things that he has done so he decides to go to the Circle of Trust. The Circle of Trust is a program where instead of going to jail it's a chance for the people to sit and talk about what the person's punishment should be. Cole's and Peter's family went to the Circle of Trust meeting. They decided that Cole's punishment is to go to an island for one year without contact to anyone to find what he really is. He went to the island and as soon as the people who took him out on the island were gone he set the house they had built on fire. His plan was to swim back to the mainland and of on with his life with no one knowing. He soon finds out that it's not that easy and looses all of his energy. He then makes a spear. All of a sudden out of nowhere a huge white bear appears and Cole charges at him, the bear then started to beat Cole up. After the attack Cole lays there with a broken arm, broken hip, and shredded stomach. About a week later people came to bring him supplies, finding Cole lying there almost dead. After a while in the hospital they let Cole go. He wanted to go back to the island because he still didn't want to go to jail. He has to sell all of his belongings to pay for it. Also he has to build his own cabin this time.
If you want to find out what else happens to Cole you have to read the book! I would recommend thins book to anyone. I think the author did a very good job on this book. It doesn't matter if you're a girl or a guy you would both love this book.

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Summary: Touching Spirit Bear
Review: The book that I am reviewing is Touching Spirit Bear and it is about a fifteen year old cole gaets beaten by his father.Just as cole's father was beaten by his father. Now cole himself is turning violent. He robbed a tool store and he got away with it for a couple of days. until peter his classmate told on him so cole beat him and peter was hospitaized. So cole's parents send him to angermangment classes that didn't help so he gets sent to an island in alaska. They give cole a little hut and supples to survive for a month. He goes walking around the island and he see's the spirit bear and think's that he can beat up the bearlike he did peter the bear broke his arm and leg. Then a few days later the two guys come back and find him on the beach and immedalty take him to a hospital and after he recovered they sent him back to the island for another month and survived.

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Summary: Touching Spirit Bear
Review: Touching Spirit Bear is a spectacular book. The book was about a boy, Cole Mathews, who has a very hard time controlling his anger. Cole Mathews steals possessions from stores a lot. One day Peter Driscal, a kid from Cole's school, found out that he had broken into the store that the police were trying to find a suspect for and reported it. When Cole found out who told on him, he chased Peter down after school and beat him very harshly. It was so bad that Peter now has problems thinking and has mental problems. When Cole got arrested, he went to court and the judge gave him a chose. The chose was either he could go to jail or Justice Circle and wouldn't have to serve as much time. Like any other kid would he decided to go to Justice Circle. The Justice Circle had some meetings and finally Garvey convinced them to send him to an island for one year so that he could think things out by himself. As he is left at the island he decided he would try to swim island to island and try to get to the United States again. After he was a ways out and starting to cramp up he turned around. At the island he now had no shelter since he burned it down before he left. After a nap he decided to go get some food. He then saw the Spirit Bear and Cole tried to kill it. Yet the bear ripped him to shreds. In fact Cole couldn't move. So when the guy that brings him his supplies saw what had happened he took him back to a hospital. Finally, after he recovered, the Justice Circle had some more meetings. They had to meet with each other to see if they should allow Cole Mathews to return to the island. If you want to see if Cole Mathews gets another shot at the island or if you want to see if Cole can change his life around. Read Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelson.

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Summary: A Touching Spirit Bear review
Review: Anger. Fear. The two coordinate and equal each other perfectly. A troubled young man: Cole Matthews, suffers from both. With his violent home and his disturbed parents, Cole is angry with his life. This book's background may seem familiar and may relate to some of America's youth. You may seem useless and wasted but that is impossible. Everyone on this earth has a meaning.

Cole was undisciplined and abused as a child. That does not mean that it gives him or anybody a reason to hate their own life. This book interpreted Cole's anger in a very physical manner, he smashed a classmate's head on a sidewalk without any remorse. A option was given to him after this horrible incident, he could go to jail, or he could attend a new type of disciplinary action called Circle Justice. In Circle Justice, the delinquent is sent to a isolated island and has to stay there for one year. The book describes this routine very meticulously. You have to totally understand the meaning of Circle Justice. You learn respect for others and you learn about inner healing for yourself. That is, if you use your time wisely and you follow what is right.

This book deals with controlling your hatred, your anger and in Cole's position, your fists. You learn about the many wonderful things you can find in life and all the wonderful things you can do to help improve it. One of the many subliminal morals you can find in this novel is "We all have only one life, you should make the best of it". Cole learns this and finds a new meaning to his life. He also learns not to take advantage of the simple gifts that are given to him. For example, the gift of shelter is given to him on the form of a makeshift shack that was built by sweat and blood of the Indians that used to live on the island. He burned it in a matter of minutes without any feeling of guilt. He just did not care about anything. That meant he would be unprotected from the cold, the rain and any other hazards. So he had to build another shelter by himself and without any help. That taught him respect for the gifts given to him.

But through all the lessons that were taught to him via Circle Justice all of them are nothing compared to the last one he learned: forgiveness. A rumored Spirit Bear was said to have lived on the island for a long time. When Cole first saw it, he tried to kill it but it hacked and slashed through him like a toothpick. His guardians came to his rescue even though he was almost mauled to death. Upon his returning to the island he showed not even the slightest hint of gratitude to his heroes. He just ignored him. On his second sighting of the Spirit Bear, he tried to ignore but it still brutalized him. Once again, his guardians came to his rescue without hesitation. Who would have it in them to rescue the ignorant young man who did not even care about their acts of kindness? That, Cole could not help but wonder. Cole learned that it was forgiveness. Forgiveness is what saved his life. He learned that selfishness and anger and hatred would take you nowhere... but forgiveness would.

On a scale of one to five this book truly deserves a five. It is a remarkable read that teaches you the basic morals of life. Are you feeling angry like Cole Matthews was? Make sure you read Touching Spirit Bear By Ben Mikaelsen.

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Summary: Touching Spirit
Review: Touching Spirit Bear

Cole Went to Juvenile Jail for smashing his classmate Peter Drisal's head on the side walk. Gravey the officer tells Cole about the Circle of Justice. At the Circle of Justice they make a desion about what to do to Cole. They decide to send him to island for a year. Without any one by him.The first couple of months were hard. After a couple of months he was hurt by a Spirit Bear.
If you want to find out the whole story read the book.