The Loneliest Polar Bear: A true story of survival and peril on the edge of a warming world
Synopsis
Six days after giving birth, a polar bear named Aurora got up and walked away from her den at the Columbus Zoo, leaving her tiny squealing cub to fend for herself. Hours later, Aurora still hadn’t returned. The cub was furless and blind, and with her temperature dropping dangerously, the zookeep-ers entrusted with her care felt they had no choice: They would have to raise one of the most dangerous predators in the world by hand. Over the next few weeks, a group of veterinarians and zookeepers worked around the clock to save the cub, whom they called Nora. Humans rarely get as close to a polar bear as Nora’s keepers got to their fuzzy charge. But the two species have long been intertwined. Three decades before Nora’s birth, her father, Nanuq, was orphaned when an Inupiat hunter killed his mother, leaving Nanuq to be sent to a zoo. That hunter, Gene Agnaboogok, now faces some of the same threats as the wild bears near his Alaskan village of Wales, on the westernmost tip of the North American continent. As sea ice diminishes and temperatures creep up year after year, Agnaboogok and the polar bears—and everyone and everything else living in the far north—are being forced to adapt. Not all of them will succeed.
Praise for The Loneliest Polar Bear
01
Dr. Jane Goodall
Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and a UN Messenger of Peace
“A moving story of abandonment, love, and survival against the odds . . . Kale Williams not only writes eloquently about little Nora and the dedication of the zoo staff—the ‘Nora Moms’ who save her life—but he also uses the tale as an entry point into important issues of our times: climate change that affects polar bears in the wild, the need for us to develop a more respectful relationship with the natural world, and the ethics of keeping animals in captivity.”
02
Nate Blakeslee
New York Times New York Times bestselling author of American Wolf
“Williams has given us a timely and well-written story about climate change along with so much more: a primer on polar bear behavior, a balanced take on the politics of zookeeping, and an evocative report on life in an Inupiat village on the cusp of environmental disaster.”
03
Eva Holland
Author of Nerve: Adventures in the Science of Fear and Mussolini's Arctic Airship
"Like a polar bear in the wild, this powerful book ranges widely. From the thinning sea ice of Alaska's Bering Sea coast to a landlocked zoo and beyond, Kale Williams effortlessly uses the story of one captive bear's struggles to illustrate the threads that tie us all together on our ailing planet. Nuanced, carefully researched, and humane, The Loneliest Polar Bear is a desperately needed book."
04
Frans de Waal
Author of Mama’s Last Hug - Animal Emotions and What They Tell Us about Ourselves
“The uniquely moving story of Nora, a polar bear born at a zoo, allows Kale Williams to make us reflect on the planet we live on and our responsibility toward it. She opens our eyes to the beauty of bear life, the need for conservation, the pros and cons of zoos, and the reality of climate change.”
05
Michael Mann
Distinguished Professor, Penn State University and author of The New Climate War: The Fight to Take Back Our Planet
“Adroitly blending history, science, and good old-fashioned storytelling, Kale Williams asks us to engage both our hearts and our minds as we reflect upon the existential threat posed by human-caused climate change.”
06
Ben Goldfarb
Author of Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter
“The Loneliest Polar Bear artfully bridges two worlds: the fast-warming Arctic, where wild bears and human communities are imperiled by melting ice, and the American zoos in which Nora, a captive-born ambassador for her species, struggles for her own survival. Kale Williams tells this ursine coming-of-age story with compassion, grace, and a reporter’s keen eye for the astonishing details of Nora’s life.”
07
Caitlin Doughty
Author of Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
"We know that polar bears are the canary in the climate change coal mine. But Williams goes further, expertly demonstrating the conflicting human and corporate interests that will come to affect every single one of us."
08
Carl Safina
Author of Becoming Wild and other books
"In The Loneliest Polar Bear, Kale Williams has crafted a compulsively readable book that masterfully—and courageously—braids the story of one bear and the stories of many bears and many people. As you’ll discover, we are one of those braided strands; we all play a role in this story. Williams is a rare author with big-picture vision and skill, and the result is this great, compelling book."
About Kale
Kale Williams is a reporter at The Oregonian/OregonLive, where he covers science and the environment. A native of the Bay Area, he previously reported for the San Francisco Chronicle. He shares a home with his wife, Rebecca; his two dogs, Goose and Beans; his cat, Torta; and his stepcat, Lucas.
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