SOLVED. Bear going over waterfall. [s]

[Roslyn]

Probably 20 years ago, I read about a fellow with a bear who went over waterfalls. I cannot remember much more about the book. Not YA.

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Is it fiction or nonfiction? Author male or female? Remember the cover?

[Roslyn]

Don't remember anything about the cover. It was fiction and I believe the author was male. In looking back, it reminds me of some of John Irving's novels-of course, he was not the author. It was probably not best seller; but it touched me immensely.

[Kris]

Roslyn, can you tell us more about the guy - e.g., teenager, adult hunter, forest ranger, just a guy lost in the woods, etc.? What was he doing before he went over the waterfalls with the bear?

[Roslyn]

He is an adult. He and his bear ride waterfalls. Frankly, I don't know anyone else who read this book, so it may be impossible to find. But I loved it.

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Was his name Sam Patch? This was a real guy who went over waterfalls. According to his wikipedia page, one time he threw a bear over first:

Shortly after, Patch went to Rochester, New York, to challenge the 99-foot High Falls of the Genesee River. On Friday, November 6, 1829, in front of an estimated 7,000 to 8,000 spectators,[5] Patch went out onto a rock ledge in the middle of the falls. He first threw a pet bear cub over the falls and the cub managed to swim safely to shore. Patch then successfully jumped after the bear.[2]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Patch

He appears in Melville's novel "Redburn."

[Roslyn]

Sounds familiar. I will research. You are amazing! I know it wasn't the Melville book; but Amazon has others. The one I read may be out of print; but I will order one of the others to read on my Kindle. Thank you!

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Actually I just ran across Sam Patch: Ballad of a Jumping Man, which one reviewer says is "charmingly narrated by a black bear with a philosophical bent."

[Roslyn]

I believe that is the book ! It was published in 1986, which makes sense since that is around the time I read it; and, now that I think about it, it was narrated by the bear. I just found it on Amazon for $.01 used :-) By the way, I HIGHLY recommend it. Thanks, Lobstergirl, for all your research and for the fine work you do.

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

You're welcome. Sounds like an intriguing book.