Short Stories

There's a Bear in the House!

There's a Bear in the House!

  • Downloads：9778
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-02-19 03:19:35
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Walter Kirn
  • ISBN：B09D3H6ZDH
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

K。Z。 Howell ，

A strange coincidence in a troubling timeIt is the little things， hidden among the tragedies and triumphs， that complete the story。 Walter Kirn once again tells the tale of little things， a bear， old film and a tree， while walking us through a most painful and personal event。 Well done and highly recommend。

Laura Freed ，

Peace Left Behind DeathMy father had ALS AND DIED IN 1998。 I like Kirn by proxy of the late night show on the most deplored station， I thought I would give this short read a try。 It is not so much about ALS， it is about the signs received after that， no matter your beliefs， bring wonder， peace， and hope。 Even smiles。 A great short story。 My father would have loved it。

Cheri ，

A short story， 29 pages， but one that isn’t easily forgotten。 This is the story of Walter Kim and his father’s wish to spend his last days in their cabin in Montana。 Rick and Dan were friends with Walter and so the two of them， along with another man ’enlisted for his size and muscle and strength’ rented a Winnebago to drive to Arizona， and transport his father to their cabin in Montana， driving slightly less than 1，400 miles there， and then back again， with Walter meeting them back at the cabin A short story， 29 pages， but one that isn’t easily forgotten。 This is the story of Walter Kim and his father’s wish to spend his last days in their cabin in Montana。 Rick and Dan were friends with Walter and so the two of them， along with another man ’enlisted for his size and muscle and strength’ rented a Winnebago to drive to Arizona， and transport his father to their cabin in Montana， driving slightly less than 1，400 miles there， and then back again， with Walter meeting them back at the cabin once the drive was finished。 Soon after they were settled in at the cabin， a young ’cinnamon-colored bear…still skinny from its winter fast’ was observed through the window， his father busy with the remote for the tv。 He tells his father that there’s a bear in the meadow near the cabin， which gets his attention for just a moment， but only a moment。 A noted change in his father， who had wanted this cabin for the proximity to the wildlife。 There is a sense of providence in this， a beautiful story sharing the last day of this man’s life， last moments for a father and son to share the words they’d held back， the words they’d never shared。 A moment of bonding， last words， last hugs， and a lasting memory。 Pub Date: 17 Feb 2022Many thanks for the ARC provided by Amazon Original Stories 。。。more

PattyMacDotComma ，

3。5★“My late mother’s father， a city man， a doctor， took me aside once at Thanksgiving after a dinner of ducks and pheasant and whispered， ‘Your father’s a savage。 Don’t be like him。’”This reads like a family anecdote， a story that has probably been told many times within the family and to friends since it happened。The author’s father is dying and wants to end his days in his cabin in Montana， near the wilderness and wildlife he loved。 Years ago， he’d been a hunter。“Half of our meals then were o 3。5★“My late mother’s father， a city man， a doctor， took me aside once at Thanksgiving after a dinner of ducks and pheasant and whispered， ‘Your father’s a savage。 Don’t be like him。’”This reads like a family anecdote， a story that has probably been told many times within the family and to friends since it happened。The author’s father is dying and wants to end his days in his cabin in Montana， near the wilderness and wildlife he loved。 Years ago， he’d been a hunter。“Half of our meals then were of game he’d killed and began with a ritual warning: ‘Don’t bite a pellet。’”The author reminisces about the years gone by and how his father is no longer a hunter。 And of course， he writes about the bear。 A real live bear in the house。 （Photographic evidence！）This isn’t a grim， hand-holding story about death， although that’s certainly part of it。 I think it’s more the recognition of a parent as an individual， and how they live outside of us and fit into the world in ways we may not be aware of。 It’s sometimes a hard thing to get your head around。On a technical note， if you read on a Kindle with a black and white screen， I recommend using the Kindle app on a device with colour so you can enjoy the photos better。 Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for the preview copy。 。。。more

Carol ，

This short story， best described as a memoir， tells of the last few weeks of the author's father's life which the two spent together in the father's upscale cabin in Montana。 It was very well written although sad to read how quickly ALS stole the father's abilities。 A very touching end to the story。Thanks to Amazon Original Stories via Netgalley for the opportunity to read this short story。 All opinions expressed are my own。Expected Publication: February 17， 2022。 This short story， best described as a memoir， tells of the last few weeks of the author's father's life which the two spent together in the father's upscale cabin in Montana。 It was very well written although sad to read how quickly ALS stole the father's abilities。 A very touching end to the story。Thanks to Amazon Original Stories via Netgalley for the opportunity to read this short story。 All opinions expressed are my own。Expected Publication: February 17， 2022。 。。。more

Marianne ，

There’s a Bear in the House！ is a short （true） story by American author， Walter Kirn and is published under the Amazon Original Stories banner。 When Kirn’s elderly father expresses a final wish to spend his last days in his remote Montana cabin， watching wildlife from his porch， three of his father’s friends hire a luxury Winnebago to pluck him from his Tucson Care Facility and deposit him at the cabin。 Kirn spends three weeks tending his father as he rapidly deteriorates with ALS。 On the first There’s a Bear in the House！ is a short （true） story by American author， Walter Kirn and is published under the Amazon Original Stories banner。 When Kirn’s elderly father expresses a final wish to spend his last days in his remote Montana cabin， watching wildlife from his porch， three of his father’s friends hire a luxury Winnebago to pluck him from his Tucson Care Facility and deposit him at the cabin。 Kirn spends three weeks tending his father as he rapidly deteriorates with ALS。 On the first day， Kirn spots a young， cinnamon-coloured bear out the window， but his father is more interested in his DVD remote， trying to watch his favourite show， “Murder， She Wrote”。 After his father dies， with no way of locking the cabin， a friend sets up motion-sensor cameras that alert Kirn to the presence of that same young bear， inside the house。 This turns out to not be the disaster it could have been。Eventually， Kirn scatters his father’s ashes as instructed， later discovering amongst his father’s undeveloped photos something that confirms he chose exactly the right spot。 The story includes photos of the bear and a certain relevant tree。 The blurb is quite misleading， referring to “a unique and consoling bond” with the bear that is never described in the story。 Quirky。This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories。 。。。more

Kelly Long ，

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review。This was a humorous and enjoyable short story。 The pictures added a lot to it and it felt like I was sitting down with the author for storytime。

Paromjit ，

Walter Kirn's emotional short story examines the relationship between a dying father and his son。 Walt is very different from his father， is not close to him， and when his father expresses his wish to die at his remote cabin in Montana， 40 minutes away from his home， he wonders if he is indeed close to death。 When his lawyer father arrives from Tucson to the cabin in a Winnebago， it is obvious he is approaching the end of his life， intent on focusing on engaging with his son and grandchildren， n Walter Kirn's emotional short story examines the relationship between a dying father and his son。 Walt is very different from his father， is not close to him， and when his father expresses his wish to die at his remote cabin in Montana， 40 minutes away from his home， he wonders if he is indeed close to death。 When his lawyer father arrives from Tucson to the cabin in a Winnebago， it is obvious he is approaching the end of his life， intent on focusing on engaging with his son and grandchildren， nature and watching Murder She Wrote， leaving Walt to address the difficult challenges of looking after him。 As his father slips away， a grieving Walt finds solace and consolation in the mystical and transcendent， with a young bear visiting the cabin and in the majesty of a tree。 Many thanks to Amazon Original Stories for an ARC。 。。。more

Jaidee ，

4 "touching， humorous， memoiric" stars ！！ Thank you to the author， Netgalley and Amazon Original Stories for an e-copy of this 15 minute read story。 I am providing my honest review。 Mr。 Kirn is a well respected author and journalist。 Here he details the final days he spends with his father in a cabin in Montana prior to his father's demise。 Through the last days he recounts his challenges with his dad and despite this provides him with loving care during his last days while attempting to make pe 4 "touching， humorous， memoiric" stars ！！ Thank you to the author， Netgalley and Amazon Original Stories for an e-copy of this 15 minute read story。 I am providing my honest review。 Mr。 Kirn is a well respected author and journalist。 Here he details the final days he spends with his father in a cabin in Montana prior to his father's demise。 Through the last days he recounts his challenges with his dad and despite this provides him with loving care during his last days while attempting to make peace with a man who is very different than him。 The story is both pragmatic and spiritual with a distance from the emotions that keep many fathers and sons safe from each other and themselves。 A young bear and a tree provide the kismet and wonder that are inherent in our worlds if we choose to engage and look。 Some lovely photographs add poignancy to the story。 。。。more