Pearly Everlasting

A Novel

By: Tammy Armstrong

Narrated by: Jean Ann Douglass

""A remarkable story, sparkling with brilliance.” —Amanda Peters, author Berry Pickers

“One of those novels that instantly transports you to a world that’s so bighearted and full of love that you can’t put it down.” —Willy Vlautin, author of The Horse and The Night Always Comes

An immersive and enchantingly atmospheric novel set during the Great Depression, about a girl and a bear raised as sister and brother in a remote logging camp and the lengths to which they’ll go to protect each other.

New Brunswick, 1934. When a cook in a logging camp finds an orphaned baby bear, he brings it home to his wife, who names the cub Bruno and raises him alongside her newborn daughter, Pearly. Growing up, Pearly and Bruno share a special bond and become inseparable. While life in the camp can be perilous—loggers are regularly injured or even killed—the Everlasting family form a close-knit community with the woodsmen, who accept and embrace the tame young bear.

But all that changes when a new supervisor arrives, a ruthless profiteer who pushes the workers to their breaking point and abuses Bruno. When the man is found dead in a ditch, the blame falls on the bear; soon after, Bruno is kidnapped and sold to an animal trader. Determined to rescue the only brother she has ever known, Pearly, now a teenager, sets off alone on a hazardous journey through the forest—her first trip to “the Outside”—to find him. In the harrowing quest to bring him home through miles of ice and snow, eluding malevolent spirits and the cruelty of strange villagers, she will discover new worlds and a strength she never knew she possessed.

Steeped in rural folklore and superstition, and set against the backdrop of an enchanting woodland, Pearly Everlasting is a story about the triumph of good over evil, the beauty of the natural world, and the bonds that cannot be broken.

Beautifully written, poetic really.

I enjoyed not only the story, but the poetic way with words the author has. It was lovely and hard at times. The narration brought me into the story until I forgot I was listening to a story.

Wonderful story of family and love

I enjoyed the book very much and recommend it. The narrator did a nice job, too! Some of the treatment of Bruno was difficult to listen to. Strong female characters to admire.

This is great writing but......

I really wanted to finish this book. I love the writing, the plot, and the characters. However, I couldn't get past the treatment of the bear. I had to stop listening because I was too invested in the bear and his relationship to the girl. I suppose I could get over it, but as I get older, it is harder to overlook even small atrocities. The author has weaved a fantastic story of myth and magic. I cannot fault her for my own squeamishness.

An interesting first try.

There are flashes of brilliance mixed in with clumsy missteps which a good editor would have caught. I expect there to be a second novel, and I have reason to hope it will be excellent.

Such rich descriptive language.

Nothing to dislike. Held my attention to the end. So so good. Sad it is over!