Prime Arctic predator and nomad of the sea ice and tundra, the polar bear endures as a source of wonder, terror, and fascination. Humans have seen it as spirit guide and fanged enemy, as trade good and moral metaphor, as food source and symbol of ecological crisis. Eight thousand years of artifacts attest to its charisma, and to the fraught relationships between our two species. In the White Bear, we acknowledge the magic of wildness: it is both genuinely itself and a screen for our imagination. Ice Bear traces and illuminates this intertwined history. From Inuit shamans to Jean Harlow lounging on a bearskin rug, from the cubs trained to pull sleds toward the North Pole to cuddly superstar Knut, it all comes to life in these pages. With meticulous research and more than 160 illustrations, the author brings into focus this powerful and elusive animal. Doing so, he delves into the stories we tell about Nature―and about ourselves―hoping for a future in which such tales still matter. Engelhard's thought-provoking iconography explores in depth the multitude of cultural roles played by the polar bear. — David Fox, Anchorage Press Essayist and wilderness guide Engelhard examines the intertwined history of polar bears and humans in this fascinating look at how we have interpreted the species. Of particular interest now as polar ice melts. — Nancy Bent, Booklist 'Iconic' is the marketingcliché of our times, applied as unthinkingly to wildlife as it is to biscuits. But here, Michael Engelhard digs deeper, tracing how the polar bear came to occupy its place in contemporary culture and, in the process, suggesting what the mechanics of iconography say about us. — Mike Unwin, BBC Wildlife Engelhard is a first-rate guide and very capable writer; Ice Bear makes fascinating reading—although grimly ironic, since the future of the polar bear in the wild has never looked bleaker. Engelhard likewise does a fantastic job of not only fleshing out the history and folklore of the polar bear but also in creating a fairly sympathetic picture of the animal along the way. — Steve Donoghue, Open Letters Monthly The product of Engelhard's exhaustive research is an eclectic, comprehensive, compelling, and very readable cultural iconography elevated to a level of art form by the inclusion of well-chosen and often stunning illustrations on almost every page. Ice Bear is a visual National Geographic with real verbal punch! — Marilyn Gates, New York Journal of Books Engelhard, a Fairbanks resident, is trained as a cultural anthropologist and works as a wilderness guide in Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The combination makes him uniquely qualified to have authored this fascinating and extensively illustrated exploration of humanity's deeply complicated relationship with an animal he is well acquainted with. — David James, Alaska Dispatch News It is in the setting of concern about global warming that Michael Engelhard has provided us with a wonderful book that uses a charismatic carnivore to help us explore the place of humans on this planet. — Casey Bush, The Bear Deluxe Magazine In Ice Bear, Michael Engelhard untangles our complicated love/hate relationship with this iconic Arctic animal. — Harry Wilson, Canadian Geographic A riveting cultural and historical study of the polar bear, Ice Bear is a profound exploration of this charismatic species, written by Arctic Alaska wilderness guide Michael Engelhard. — Grapevine (Natural History Book Service) Michael Engelhard has crafted a richly illustrated, authoritative and eye-opening testament to our evolving and often tragic relationship with the polar bear . . . From Native mythology to modern-day "doom" tourism, the book does an excellent job of viewing the species through the eyes of many different cultures during many different time periods . . . The images alone justify owning this book. — John Yunker, EcoLit Books Like the whale in Moby-Dick, the polar bear holds a place in our imagination that takes us abruptly outside the comfort zone of our civilization. [Ice Bear] expertly probes the history and the substance of our relationship with the bear that is white. — David Knowles, EarthLines Eminently readable . . . expertly researched . . . — Susan Sommer, Alaska This expensively produced, glossy book feels like an encyclopedia on a single subject . . . . Engelhard's writing is very enjoyable, and readers interested in the polar bear will have months of reading material. — George Erdosh, San Francisco Book Review This extraordinary whale- and walrus-wrestling monster is proof positive that wildness persists on our planet, despite the onslaughts of the Anthropocene. For all its nightmare-haunting power, however, the aspect of the polar bear that really makes it an icon of the age is its vulnerability . . . . [One] merit of the book is the author's willingness to track these themes to their origins.