A graphic novel about a girl and her boyfriend...who is a bear. After reading this little story, I was desperately trying to search for some underlying theme that perhaps that may have been overlooked by many readers. However, I couldn't logically come up with a single takeaway other than maybe that although long distance relationships are difficult to maintain, one must have hope? Or maybe that love always wins? I honestly do not know, the art was incredibly adorable so I will give the graphic novel those stars. The sex aspect of the book was kind of weird though, although it wasn't explicitly said the main character had sex with the bear, it was still implied which made me EXTREMELY uncomfortable. I would only recommend for the art aspect because it's the kind of illustrations I enjoy since it's aesthetically pleasing. Overall, I would give this a read if you simply would like to read something out of the ordinary.

A fun & funny take on dating outside one's normal dating pool! Surprisingly astute take on modern dating.

Wow!!! I was blown away by all the FEELS from this book! The graphics are absolutely charming and adorable, and it is a quick read for sure. That said, the emotion in it is STRONG. I am a new fan of Pamela Ribon. While the book sounds funny at first, and it is very quirky, it also has a lot of hidden emotion that will leave you thinking for days!

I loved this book! It had me oooing and aweing in all the places! The art style is fun and matches the tone of the writing perfectly. The content is completely relatable - from friends to ex-boyfriends, to the loss of a beloved pet, and aggrevating jobs. Who cares if he is a bear - Bear is just right for her.

A well done but fun work. It's a bit of weird read but it's definitely worth reading. I'd definitely recommend it to people who enjoy weird comics or enjoyed games like Hatoful Boyfriend.

Awesome graphics.. loved this graphic novel! It was. It's a cute witty novel of love.. nothing different.. but he's a bear!

There is no question, going into this book, what sort of reading experience you're in for. I mean honestly, the woman is dating a literal bear. It's an odd concept but conveys a number of real world messages about relationships, judgement, and impermanence.

Nora has dated a lot of jerks. Now all she wants is a boyfriend that will cuddle. Though friends and family are not always supportive of her choice, she finds the perfect boyfriend in a bear. Their relationship is cute and almost perfect, but what will happen when winter comes?

Weird premise, but I loved it!

My book club has been reading Bear by Marian Engel. We have one copy and we write comments in it before passing it along to the next person. The final person finished it and last Friday we got together to do a final review complete with dramatic readings of the comments. As you can imagine, when I saw this title, I HAD to get a copy of it. I mean, first, it would be an inside joke with my book club. Second, the story is odd but the cover is... adorable?

My boyfriend is a Bear isn't a joke. It had some funny, and sweet moments. When it's hibernation time, and Nora is left alone to face the relationship criticism from her family and friends, I felt so bad for her. I don't know of many women who will say anything bad about a person's partner while the relationship exists. She had her own doubts the relationship would survive the time apart and to have that piled on top of her was just crappy of her friends and family to do.

THIS WAS WEIRD.
OK, so this is a book about a girl and his bear boyfriend. At the beginning, I thought "well, this would be cute" buttttt I didn't expect them to date and have sex(literally). Whatttttttttt? She should have listen to her friends, I mean is a BEARRRRRR. Nothing good can come from that.
Although, the dialogues were really fluent and the art was nice(not my favorite type of illustration). Overall, I think this book is for the open-minded people that can accept that a girl is obsessed with a bear LOL. They could have been friends and that could have worked well!!

As always, I love it when the title tells you everything you need to know.
After she cuts her hair, the story goes into flashback to how they met. She goes hiking, there’s the bear, they like each other, they’re in a relationship, much of which takes place in her apartment, not the woods. There’s inherent problems with dating a bear, but love seems to conquer all.
It’s the little things that make this worthwhile, small touches of humor. Some of my faves:
As someone allergic to bee stings, I second the advice about not dating them, especially the queen.
Glad there was a mention of her favorite sundress, because otherwise it seems like all she has is that one dress that she wears everywhere. She even says she doesn’t like to wear pants, and the bear is okay with that.
There’s a list of all the things he’s broken, but never her heart, so it’s okay.
“Sup, LA?”
There’s a montage of guys she’s dated, though she sheepishly adds that it’s not a complete list.
The bear dressed in an Arcade Fire shirt. . . too much.
C’mon, Runyon is so over. Good choice with The Grove, though.
Subjecting the Bear to Downton Abbey is just cruel.
Throughout hibernation she’s trying to be somewhat normal, while at the bottom of each page there’s a series of panels showing the bear tossing and turning.
Her favorite swear word is “balls,” which on her is so cute. And she blushes when he uses “boobs” in Scrabble. His favorite word is “Grah!” but then it’s his only word.
Was surprised that the beautiful artwork on the cover was not replicated inside; not that the rest of it is bad, it’s just a lot simpler.
Everything that was said about this is true. Really sweet and optimistic. Doesn’t try to be any deeper than it is.

It's a graphic novel about a girl who is in a relationship with a bear. It's not a were-bear, or a person cursed to be a bear, or a Beauty and the Beast thing. Her boyfriend is literally a bear. It's strange, and you have to not think too closely about it, but it's oddly adorable and compelling.

I was a bit disappointed that there wasn't more to the story though.

I am finding it hard to decide if I liked this book or not. It's a love story of a woman and bear. The bear is everything she has ever wanted in a man, and she loves him. The bear is not anthropomorphic, it does not talk, but it does get a job, fix things, etc. He’s never meant to be human, or a representation of a human. The story is simple, quick and cute. But it the panel about mating season being fun… Can’t get that one out of my head. Especially when there is an illustration later in the book of 2 bears mating, that the human bear mating thing lingers in the back of my mind, and make me think eeeeeee.

When I first heard the pitch for My Boyfriend is a Bear, I immediately thought of all the fairy tales that involve bears as romantic partners. As such, the concept did not seem far-fetched; on the contrary, it has been in our story cycle for hundreds of years. However, because Pamela Ribon is behind it, I had no doubt that it was going to be refreshingly different.

My Boyfriend is a Bear centers on Nora, a woman who has had a lot of really awful boyfriends. On a hike, however, Nora meets the man (or bear, more accurately) of her dreams. He is everything she wants in a romantic partner, yet there are a few hang-ups. For one, he is a bear that hibernates all winter. Can Nora handle the time apart? Second, the people in Nora’s life are having trouble accepting this non-normative relationship. Will Nora choose a life with her soulmate even if that means isolating her family and friends?

Ribon’s writing is equal parts humorous and affecting. Sure, My Boyfriend is a Bear is silly, but Ribon manages to deliver a story about the difficulties of finding that person/animal that takes away your loneliness. While Nora and her bf do have their difficulties—he’s rather clumsy, to put it mildly—they thoroughly enjoy spending quality time together: binging Downtown Abbey in bed or cuddling and reading together. And it’s hard not to feel a bit emotional as both Nora and the bear try to deny that hibernation season is fast approaching.

Cat Farris’s art pairs perfectly with Ribon’s writing. The art is lighthearted and cartoonish with a hint of manga influences. When Nora goes into chibi mood, it is hilarious. And for a character that only says “grah,” Farris does a great job of instilling the bear with a unique personality.

Verdict: Buy it.
My Boyfriend is a Bear is a fun, lighthearted tale that speaks to the worries of growing up and finding love. My Boyfriend is a Bear will be released on April 17, 2018.

The story was strange but the art was great! You gotta love romance and satire smooshed together in one well drawn comic.

I adore this little graphic novel. From the illustrations to the pure emotions, I read this from cover to cover in glee. This book is a treat. A young woman’s relationship with an actual live bear is met with struggles – from a friend’s negative reactions, to the challenge of not seeing each other for the months of hibernation. Though the obstacles are definitely specific to their unique relationship, the message rings loud and clear for everyone to hold close: Do what makes you happy with the people (or bears?) that you love most and don’t worry about the rest. Five stars from me.

This book is ridiculous, quirky, and, yes, it stars an actual bear, and OH BOY I loved it. I haven’t read many rom-com graphic novels, but I definitely need to look for more if this is the kind of story to expect!

Nora lives in LA, has a demoralizing job at a scammy call center, and has had a long string of lame boyfriends. When her latest boyfriend makes fun of her for reading women’s magazines while camping, she storms off, only to encounter a very surprised bear. Suffice it to say that both the camping trip and that relationship is over! Some time later, she goes to take out the trash and finds the bear standing by her trashcans with her magazines. And, thus, the start of a beautiful relationship. It turns out that, despite that fact he can’t speak English, he’s a pretty decent boyfriend. He cuddles, he fixes things around the house, and apparently they have a pretty good sex life.

So, yeah, Nora and Bear end up in a relationship, and they are honestly a cute couple. Nora's family and friends have a mixed reaction, understandably. People stare and point when they're out in public (if they don't run away screaming). One of her friends is completely against the relationship ("You guys don't share the same backgrounds! What do you even talk about?") while the other is so pro-Bear that she becomes more of his friend than Nora's. So, beneath the cute story about a bear and a girl, there's a lot of themes: navigating toxic and over-supportive friends, interracial and intercultural relationships, parents who don't think any partner will be good enough for you, and all the things that go into making a relationship work - including navigating a long distance relationship when he goes into hibernation.

The art is perfect for the story, cute and colorful, with a mix of manga-style character art, a more realistic style, and even watercolor-like art for when Bear's in hibernation.

Overall, it's a cute mix of sweetness and sadness, and I'm definitely looking forward to whatever Ribbon and Ferris come up with next! Recommended for anyone who loves quirky love stories!

This wasn't bad, I liked the art style a lot. The story just wasn't for me. It was a little weirder than I expected, more serious and less funny than I expected, which made it go in weird directions I wasn't expecting. I ended up skimming through most of it because I just wasn't into it. Maybe someone else whose sense of humor is more in line with the author's will enjoy this more.

Definitely a different basis for a graphic novel- but it works! Artwork is good, and the story is adorable. The Bear with little reading glasses gave me a smile every time!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book, which I voluntarily chose to review.

The premise of this book was very strange, but it was actually really lovely and heartwarming. It was a lot of fun to read, and the scenery and colours are beautiful to look at. Personally, my favourite character was Nutso the cat, but the bear was pretty fun too.