William Kotzwinkle is in top comic form in this outrageous and uproarious parable featring Hal Jam-a big black bear who finds a manuscript under a tree in the Maine woods, dons a suit and a tie, and heads off to the big city to seek his fame and fortune. What follows is a riotous magical romp with the buoyant Hal Jam as he leaves the quiet, nurturing world of the forest for the glittering and corrupt world of humans. New York and Hollywood and all that lies between serve as an expansive palette for Kotzwinkle's wickedly funny satiric brush. The Bear Went Over the Mountain skewers our age's obsession with money and fame in a delicious bedtime story for grown-ups!

more absurd than laugh-out-loud funny - Hal Jam the bear was an immediatley likeable character and I enjoyed his story.

and I love the cover art on this edition.

released to the COT Bookcrossing Zone