First published 2007
A soldier returns from war with nothing left. His home is gone, his family and friends are dead, and his youth has vanished along with his innocence. When despair overwhelms him, the devil appears with an offer. The soldier must wear the skin of a dead bear as his only clothing and cannot wash or cut his hair for seven years. In return, the bear skin's pockets will always contain gold. The devil makes this wager believing the soldier will lose his humanity and his soul in the process. As the soldier lives as the Bearskinner, he must decide whether he is still a man beneath the fur and filth. The gold in his pockets gives him power, but his appearance makes him monstrous to others. Laura Amy Schlitz retells this classic Grimm fairy tale as a story about what happens when someone loses everything and must fight to reclaim their humanity.
Genres: literary-fiction, historical-fiction, fantasy, fairy-tale-retellings
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water
40 pages · Hardcover · Candlewick Press
Content warnings: death, violence