Gentle Ben

I recently finished the book Gentle Ben by Walt Morey. Gentle Ben has 195 pages, and is a fairly easy book to read. Gentle Ben is an Honors book, and is worth 8 points. Gentle Ben is an animal book.
Gentle Ben takes place in Orca City, Alaska. Mark Anderson is the main character. Mark has a very unusual pet. He owns a real live brown bear! His name is Ben, and he is extremely gentle. Mark, along with his family and friends, know that Ben is practically harmless. But the rest of the town doesn't know that, and many fear that Ben will someday harm their children. Life can't always go your way, and Mark has to give up his beloved pet. Ben is sent on a boat to a nearby island where many other brown bears live. Mark is terribly sad to see his best friend go. Then Mark's father's boat sinks, and he is desperate for a new job. Mark and his family move across town to a nearby fishing trap, and there Mark and his father begin work. One day pirates show up and try to steal the fish. When all hope is lost, Ben shows up. Mark and his old friend were united once again.
My favorite Character in the book was Clearwater, Mr. Anderson's worker. Clearwater helped Mr. Anderson fish, and he always knew what to do when things went wrong. I think Clearwater was very wise. When the fishing was bad, Clearwater knew just where to go to get salmon. When Mr. Anderson was deciding whether fishing in certain spots was safe, Clearwater always knew the answer. Clearwater was definetly my favorite character in the book.
I think I am like Clearwater. When my friends have problems, I can usually help them out. When kids are debating whether to do something or not, they will sometimes come to me. I enjoy helping out as best I can. So yes, I think I am like Clearwater.
It surprised me when Ben saved the Andersons from the pirates. Ben had been away from Orca city for quite a while by then, and Mark had finally gotten over the pain of letting his favorite pet go. I was sure that the pirates would just take all the fish and the Andersons would go on with life, a few dollars short though. Yet it was not to be so. Ben, good old faithful Ben, recognized the Anderson family, and noticed that something was not right. He really saved the day. I would recommend this book to those who like books about friendships, animals, and adventure.

- Hoppy 12 years old