Science Comics: Polar Bears: Survival on the Ice by Jason Viola
Published by First Second on January 1st 2019
ISBN: 1626728232
Pages: 128
Goodreads

Another excellent entry in the Science Comics series. This graphic novel, aimed at an upper elementary or middle grade reader but of interest to almost any age, focuses on polar bears and challenges the reader to explore the world of these bears that we think we know so much about (they are white, they live in the Arctic, they eat seals, they are losing their habitat). Reading this book was so informative; it was a deep dive into the lives of this animal. The reader will learn just how important ice is to polar bears; how they live and hunt and why; about mating and dining and stalking. Like all of the other books in the Science Comic series, Viola uses humor to discuss some of the more delicate areas like the subadult years of a polar bear and mating. And he is careful about how much gore to show when discussing hunting and eating.  Readers of the series will not be disappointed. Perhaps it will even inspire one or more of them to work on ways to protect this magnificent animal.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth