Touching Spirit Bear Book Report

Have you ever been angry? Have you done something you regret or look back on while you were angry? Can you recall what made you angry? In Touching Spirit Bear Ben Mikaelsen demonstrates that there are many ways to deal with anger. However, you can only control anger if you accept people to help you. We all have experienced anger in our lives. It's how you control and change your anger that shapes who you are as a young person. Your expression of anger also defines how people see you as an individual. Cole has been affected by his anger; he’s handled his situation of anger positively and negatively, and he’s changed a lot through his experiences on the island.

Cole is greatly affected by anger because he has …show more content…
One of the best examples from the book is when he brutally beats up Peter driscal. The reason he beats up Peter is because he was angry and furious Peter snitched on him for robbing a hardware store. He beat him up so badly Peter has speech problems, vivid nightmares, and worst of all suicidal thoughts. Cole even burned down his shelter because he was alone and angry with all the people who who planned to send him to the island and also because he wanted to escape (page 25). Every time Cole gets angry and can't handle a situation he just finds someone or something to rage at and lash out on trying to forget the pain he's enduring instead of addressing it and solving it. One of the craziest things hes done was threaten and kill the spirit bear(page 44) but at the end the bear literally crushes his body and nearly kills him. Thats insane he even thought about killing the spirit bear because the spirit bear was stronger, faster, and fitter. The reason he threatens to kill the spirit bear was because he was angry the bear showed no fear and didn't back down(page 44). Cole even says “The mauling didn't make sense everything had been always been afraid of him. Why wasn't the bear scared? Cole doesn't realize his anger is affecting him by making bad choices. Edwin and Garvey help him deal with his anger by doing things like carrying the ancestor rock, offering circle justice, soaking in freezing cold water, and also giving him advice about how anger is never forgotten, along with offering different perspectives trying to change Coles mindset by telling him on page 139 “Yes the hot dog celebration was a big deal. It was a party.It was a feast. All because that is what I made it. Yours was simply food because that what you made it to be. All of life is a hot dog. Make of it what you will. I suggest you make your time here on the island a celebration”. He takes the advice he is given and tries to