SIGN UP TO HOST A POCKET BEAR TOY DRIVE
“Comforting is what we toys do. And it’s the best job on the planet.”
Librarians, teachers, and booksellers: after reading and sharing Pocket Bear by Katherine Applegate, host a Toy Collection Drive to benefit children in your community. Sign up today to receive “How to Host a Toy Drive” guide, poster, “I donated” stickers, and more!
Materials will be shipped the first week of October while supplies last.
Meet Pocket, created as a good luck charm for soldiers going into battle, whose bravery and loyalty lives on long after the war.
From Katherine Applegate, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Odder and The One and Only Ivan.
Thimble-born from tip to toe, Pocket Bear remembers every moment of his becoming: the glimmering needle, the silken thread, the tender hands as each careful stitch brought him closer to himself. Born during the throes of WWI, he was designed to fit into the pocket of a soldier’s jacket, eyes sewn a bit higher than normal so that he always gazed upward. That way, glancing at his pocket, a soldier would see an endearing token of love from someone back home, and, hopefully, a good luck charm.
Now, over a century later, Pocket serves as unofficial mayor of Second Chances Home for the Tossed and Treasured, where stuffed toy animals are refurbished and given a fresh opportunity to be loved. He and his best feline friend Zephyrina, known far and wide as “The Cat Burglar,” have seen it all, and then some.
An unforgettable tale of bravery, loyalty, and kindness, Pocket reminds us all that love comes in many forms (sometimes filled with fluff), and that second chances are always possible.
Katherine Applegate Teacher’s Guide
Explore themes of community, empathy, resilience, and the environment through books by Katherine Applegate. Download a free discussion guide here!
