April’s dad is ready to propose to his girlfriend, but he’s very nervous about doing it. April decides she’d like to help. Dad stresses again and again about being careful and not to lose the engagement ring, which April brushes off. He should know how responsible she is.

Unfortunately for April, her best efforts to keep the ring safe never thought to include her very best animal friend, Bear.

A surprise visit is a wonderful treat for April, but she and the family are soon swept up in a terrifying mystery. While April, Bear and her favourite husky sled dog Blaze are outside in the snow, something has happened back at her friend Hedda’s cabin.

It was supposed to be a special occasion, but April’s baby brother August has vanished. A snow storm is descending on them and they’ve searched everywhere. Where can a crawling baby be?

Released as No. 3.5 in The Last Bear series, Bear Rescue is a World Book Day 2026 book. At only 96 pages instead of the usual 300 or so in the other books in the series, it’s a much quicker read.

Despite the length, Bear Rescue is still long enough to capture readers with Bear’s return, a missing item, and then scarily, April’s missing baby brother.

As a lover of this series devoted to the Arctic, the environment, and the changes within it, Bear Rescue is a wonderful addition – taking the reader further in April’s family life with a new baby brother, and all her friends and family, both furry and human.

Author – Hannah Gold

Illustrator – Levi Pinfold

Age – 8+

(2026, Harper Collins, Animals, Series, Action, Family, Mystery, Polar Bear, Arctic, Snow, Sled Dogs, Proposal, Engagement Ring, Novella, Little Brother)