The author recounts rescuing and raising an orphaned black bear cub, narrating field encounters, travel hardships, and the cub's training and behavior, accompanied by photographs. The narrative is followed by a systematic natural-history treatment covering distribution, classification, physical descriptions and track comparisons, and detailed accounts of feeding, denning, and seasonal habits. Personal observation and practical notes on human-bear interactions and captive care are integrated with scientific descriptions to provide both an intimate portrait of individual life and a broader guide to the species' characteristics.