Being both white and very large, Farley stands out among his Iñupiat neighbors in the Alaska village he calls home, like the hungry polar bears that wander its streets. Good-natured and a little hapless, he works as an investigator for a North Slope oil company.

The first few chapters had me chuckling and even laughing out loud but then, shockingly, everything changed and the story became very sad and yet heartwarming. The setting moved to Portland Oregon where we're introduced to a whole new cast of characters, besides Farley himself. The story was still good but I had hoped to spend more time in Alaska with the characters we met in the first few chapters. For a big man, poor Farley takes a lot of physical abuse. This is an unusual book, well written with intriguing characters and nice short chapters. I highlighted many aspects of Portland which are described and will be doing some research.

My thanks to Blackstone Publishing via Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Published: April 2, 2024

I was transfixed!

This tale crept up on me and wouldn’t let go. From Nanuqmiut Village in Alaska where a lonely giant of a man, Farley, lost all he cared about to a bear; to the darkside of Portland, Oregon, where the “under housed” are organizing and occupying space outside apartments. The apartment tenants have to run a gauntlet of harassment and more entering and leaving the building.
One tenant, Lissa nearly looses her daughter Olive after being menaced by a homeless man. Lissa is startled by his dog tied to the bus shelter. It’s raining and a domino effect ensues. Lissa bumps into Olive who falls into the watery gutter just as a truck’s coming. Olive is rescued by Farley. It’s the beginning of a new mission for Farley, not that he knows it at the time.
Olive goes missing, the police ignore Lissa’s pleas, and Farley takes up her cause.
The plot is relentless, empathetic and fascinating.
An unusual story that has attitude and compassion, along with some shocking moments.

A Blackstone ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Why do some books speak to you more loudly than others? I've never worked it out but Ordinary Bear is one of those books that I fell in love with despite the subject matter of loss and tragedy.

The story follows Farley who returns to Portland after the death of his daughter, April. He ends up the streets with the growing homeless population as a kind of penance for the wrongs he thinks he's committed. One day he saves a little girl and then befriends her and her mother. But the story is only just beginning as more tragedy is in store. The question is, can Farley find redemption?

The character of Farley is not one you'll forget soon and the beginning of this book made me gasp with shock. It is certainly one if the most shocking starts to a novel that I've ever read. It sets you up for what is a look into the way guilt works and how, even though there is sometimes nothing you have to repent for, that people need forgiveness.

There were a lot of tears reading this but it was funny too. Farley is an extremely likeable character and the descriptions of the Arctic, Portland and the homeless camps are crystal clear.

Not an easy read because of the subject matter but an excellent novel. CB Bernard is a new author to me but I want very much to read his first two books after this.

Thanks to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the advance review copy.