This is a fascinating story of rare and beautiful animals and the crew of research photographers who became intimately associated with them. It offers some startling revelations into the life and behavior of bears. The Spirit Bear, or Kermode Bear, is a white genetic variety of black bear, found only on Princess Royal Island off British Columbia. The region is also home to black bears and grizzly bears which are included in the book as well. What is most remarkable here is how the bears on the island, which had very little prior human contact, accepted the crew with an open gentleness allowing many close encounters to be documented. The book is written in an engaging first person style and beautifully photographed with close ups of bears in various activities. It will surely be a favorite addition to the library of any nature lover.

Spirit Bear is the best combination of a well-conceived book design, telling photography, and an exceptional storyline. The author's credibility is supported by a three-generation family history in grizzly bear country. His true experience, though, is reflected in his down-to-earth sincerity and simplicity of reporting. Reverence, balanced with pragmatic humor, sets a very ageeable tone for this fascinating book. With only one very moderately bloody-nosed bear photo, you could quite readily share this book with children. I grew up in bear country and now live in the heart of tree-hugging country and I found this book to be true to the core of both. And a darn fine read.

This book will give you the chills! A mystical yet true story on the nature of "wild animals" and the mystical and spiritual link between "us" and "them".Gorgeous full color photography. The book ends with the impending destruction of the Spirit Bears habitat by logging and a plea to save this unique island ecosystem.

Being a Steeler Fan, I have read both Terry Bradshaw's and Rocky Bleir's books, and while I found them interesting, I didn't get quite the feel for the individual as well as the game from their books as I did from Andy Russell's. I am not just a fan of the sport of football, but a fan of the players. As a fan of the individuals, I like to know as much about them as possible. Everything from their childhood and family life, through high school and college, because all of that has an effect on their football career and what they bring to the game. Andy's stories about his life after football give us a perspective on the good effects that the commraderie and competitiveness of football can have on the rest of your life. I particularly enjoyed the chapter which tells of his visits to combat areas in Vietnam. The American soldiers in the various hospitals had the same reaction to American football players. I totally understand that reaction - meeting A Pittsburgh Steeler so far away from home helped the soldier forget the harshness of war for just a few moments and go back to all that is good in the world - good old American Football!

This is the story of a former NFL All Pro linebacker going on a journey of self discovery after retiring from the game. Along the way he reminisces about his famous teammates: Joe Greene, Terry Bradshaw, Jack Ham, Rocky Bleier and others. He and his Steeler pal, Ray Mansfield, take Lynn Swann and Mel Blount around the world, giving speeches from Hong Kong to London, and sports clinics for young people from Singapore to Jeddah while still finding time to develop his international investment business. Two stories tell of dodging bullets on a USO tour of Vietnam and Thailand with ex-congressman Jack Kemp, Bobby Bell, John David Crow and Bill Brown. Along the way the adventurer team of Russell/ Mansfield test themselves on a wilderness canoe race in Canada, on mountain tops in Nepal and barely make it out of the Grand Canyon. The writer, a sensitive sort, who struggles to find himself after leaving the game gives the reader a first hand look of what it was like to be on the field with the world champion Pittsburgh Steelers. This book is an easy read--one that will keep the reader rivited to every story.

Andy Russell gives us a real insight into the NFL and what it takes to be successful and a winner at the highest level of competition. He does this with humour and with stories that illustrate football`s complexity. It is a great read and a must for any fan of the game. You don`t have to be a Steeler fan to enjoy these stories as they give you a rare look into what happens of and off he field.

Jim Card

This book, while containing stories and episodes of Andy Russell's career as a Pittsburgh Steeler, has lessons on life for all sports fans. Whether in the sports arena, or business world or in life, the message and many of the chapters are about experiencing life events; about perservering when things are darkest; and about the importance of teamwork in or out of sports. I found myself going back and reading some of the chapters over again, not just because of the story, but of the message. Andy has added to his wonderful first book, and hopefully there will be another one in the future. His stature as author is growing.

I liked this book. It was about two kids watching a house next door for the owner that was in South America. I liked It because you didn't Know what was next. I think other kids would like this book because it's a mystery type of book. I enjoyed reading this book.

Andy Russell grew up in grizzly country, married a young woman who had also grown up in grizzly, and raised a family in grizzly country. The stories are the real thing, with all the wonder and humor that comes from lifetimes of experience with wildlife. This book, with Frank Duqesne's NO ROOM FOR BEARS, and Enos Mills' THE GRIZZLY, is a classic that belongs on the shelf of everyone interested in the grizzly and its future in North America.

Andy Russell's Grizzly Country blends a rich history of concern for this bear with some gentle and telling words to the wise. He even got ahead of the scientists in some cases. For instance, biologists used to insist that the bears living on the coast of Alaska were not the same species as the bears living inland. Russell wryly wrote how strange it was to see a bear moving up one side of a mountain, and become another species just by crossing the ridge and moving inland, down the other side of the mountain.

Russell saw grizzlies as a child, and raised his kids around the bears. He has great stories to tell, stories of humor, and depth. This is a very fine book, cover to cover.

I don't usually write book reviews, but as I came across this book for sale on Amazon, it brought back wonderful memories. I purchased this book back in 1973. I loved it then and I love it now. I re-read it for maybe the fifth time. I decided to write this reveiw.
I am not well educated or well traveled, but I know adventure when I read it and this book is of a great adventure. It is a group of short stories written by Andy Russell, who was born in 1915, more importantly at the foot of the Great Rockies mountains in southwestern Alberta Canada.
He describes his childhood growing up on a farm there, where he learned very young how to take care of himself. Fishing, hunting and trapping in a country of great beauty, that he describes as no one else could. Some stories are of breaking, riding and training horses. This is a book for someone who loves animals and the great outdoors, and especially for someone who loves adventure. His travels take him from the farms of the great plains to the beautiful mountains of the west and north to the cold of the frozen tunda. It is also about animals small and large, from weasels and minks to bears and elk, as well as fishing, the kind of which is very hard to find these days. There are stories told around camp fires, of cowboys and of the English Remittance men. Thrills vary from forest fires to the stalking of a trophy elk.
He went on to become a great guide of the Rockies, both for hunting and for those who hunt with a camera. This is a great adventure and a must read. If you read this book you should also read another book by him called "Grizzly Country". It is said by many to be one of the best books ever written about bears, both from the scientific point of view and by someone who was a conservationalist and a naturalist. I love bears and I loved that book also. I loved them both. I hope to read other by him. Enjoy and thank you Andy Russell.

Trails Of A Wilderness Wanderer are true stories from the West blending the autobiography of an outdoorsman with accounts of living in the wild places of the Rockies, following old trails and meeting hunters and explorers. An absorbing outdoorsman's diary filled with nature and observations of the wild.

Mr. Russell takes you back to the early days when only Indians and bears roamed the land, through his youth and adulthood as an outdoorsman in the wilds of early Canada. He tells of living a life we can only dream of now. The people he writes of were real and made Canada what it is today. I have reread this book almost yearly since it came out in 1971. You will feel as if you have walked his trails with him and love the life he led. An excellent gift for the city-bound outdoorsman!!!

I think it is was a stupid book!!

This is a very informative book about an interesting man with an interesting story!!!

Good book for children just starting with chapter books. Everytime Andy turns around it seems that he is getting into trouble, whether its his fault or not. Kids will enjoy the pranks in the classroom and may get into the deeper character of Tanisha, who lives with Andy's family while her parents recover in a rehabilitation center from an accident.

The only reason I didn't give it more stars was how the classroom was described and how the substitute teacher was written. She is new to teaching and walks in not knowing how to handle the class and gives them tasks that are outrageous for their age, yet it seems they complete all the tasks given to them and only complain.