Shadow of a Bear: A Poem in 23 Passages

UPDATE: The second edition is now available. You can order it HERE

In this immersive meditation on wildness, kinship, and the porous boundary between human and animal life, Rebecca Weil layers observation of seasonal changes and the rhythms of rural life with the presence of black bears as both literal and symbolic beings.

All proceeds from the book go to the Kilham Bear Center in New Hampshire, for the rescue, rehabilitation and release of orphaned, abandoned, and injured black bear cubs.

The front and back cover images reproduce watercolors by Kristen Griger. 

“Weil has a way of writing little blessings for moments of insight that settle the mind. Weil’s poems remind me of how a poem, like an episode of direct encounter with Earth creatures, can offer discovery, connection, immersion, as if leaves and wings and roots and all the rest are teaching us how to be human here, and Weil is the courier of this instruction.” —Kim Stafford, author Wild Honey, Tough Salt, Singer Come from Afar, and As the Sky Begins to Change

“At moments spare and at other times lush and luxurious, Weil’s language enthralls, serving as a wise and insistent guide to the possibilities of crossing boundaries and learning to live peacefully in the presence of the world that sustains us.” —Todd Davis, author of Native Species, Coffin Honey, and Ditch Memory: New and Selected Poems

After publication by Earthshine Poetry Journal,
Animal Footnotes shared “Donkey Time.”