The Girl who Speaks Bear by Sophie Anderson

Yanka, raised by a bear until she was two, has always wanted to know about her past. She loves the fairy tales told by her friend Anatoly, picking them over for scraps of truth to tell her who she is. An accident in the village sends her careening into the forest in search of answers, and she will find a whole new world waiting for her.




What an amazing story. I haven't read Sophie's first novel, The House with Chicken Legs, but having read this one I'm determined to get to that one when I can. This is a completely magical story, steeped in Russian folklore and wonderfully told. Like in the best fairytales, the heroine gathers a group of others around her to help. Mousetrap is my favourite, but the others are all wonderful in their own ways. Well, Anatoly could be better, but he shares all the wonderful fairytales that are woven into the story, so I'll forgive him.

I've always adored folk tales, and the ones featured here are just beautiful. I'll be looking out for more titles by Sophie, and I'll be going back to read Chicken Legs as soon as I possibly can. A wonderful read.

Found abandoned in a bear cave as a baby, 12-year-old Yanka has always felt out of place in her small village. When she wakes up to find that her legs have become bear legs, she sets off into the forest to discover who she is, on a journey that takes her from icy rivers to smouldering mountains, with an ever-growing group of misfits alongside her... Interwoven with traditional stories of bears, princesses and dragons, Yanka's journey is a gorgeously lyrical adventure from the best-selling author of The House With Chicken Legs.