Brothers In Arms by Susan Hood

During World War II, Poland was invaded first by the Soviet Union and then by Nazi Germany. Men, women and children fled south to Allied army training camps located in the Middle East. In Persia (now called Iran) one of these refugees "met a little boy holding a mysterious sack." This is where our story begins.

It is April 8, 1942 in the mountains of Persia, where a young woman named Irena, her mother and a lieutenant among the many travellers met a young boy holding a sack containing a bear cub! The bear cub enchanted Irena and so the lieutenant gave the boy some coins to purchase the cub.

However, the cub was full of mischief, stealing food and keeping them awake at night. Irena knew the cub, a Syrian brown bear, would grow to be over five hundred pounds! She knew she would not be able to keep him.

In August, 1942, Irena encountered Polish soldiers and their general who had fled from the Nazis in their country. They too were refugees and orphans. The brown bear helped with soldier morale and so the general agreed to adopt him. They named the bear, Wojtek (Voy-tek) which means "happy warrior." Wojtek did almost everything the soldiers did: he rode in the jeeps and marched upright alongside the soldiers. 

When the  Polish soldiers regrouped at Gedera where there was an Allied training camp, Wojtek accompanied them. In September 1942, Wojtek had formed a close relationship with one soldier, Corporal Piotr Prendys, who was nicknamed "Mother Bear". The bear loved to cuddle up in bed with Prendys, who had become separated from his wife in children during the war.

Wojtek had an enormous appetite and soon grew to be very large. Two teenage soldiers soon became his best friends. One soldier later stated that Wojtek was very sociable and kind. Eventually, a dalmation named Kirkuk was added and the two animals spent much time playing together.

In June, 1943, the soldiers were in Iraq. Wojtek struggled to cope with the intense heat and often like to shower with the men. He even once surprised an enemy spy hiding in the showers. The man revealed that they were planning to raid the camp and fearing he would be fed to the bear he gave up the names of his accomplices!

In September 1943, the Polish soldiers moved to another camp where they were reunited with Wojtek's friend, Kirkuk. Both animals were stung by a scorpion and became seriously ill. Sadly Kirkuk did not survive.

In January, 1944, the soldiers travelled to Egypt and then onto a boar, the MS Batory to travel to Italy. However, the British Admiralty would not allow Wojtek, a bear to sail. The Polish soldiers knew that Wojtek would not be able to survive on his own, so they came up with a unique solution: they enlisted in the Polish II Corps, 22nd Artillery Supply Company! 

From this point on, Wojtek became a very important member of the company, not just helping with morale but even helping the soldiers. 

Discussion

Brothers In Arms is an informative picture book about the famous Syrian brown bear, Wojtek, adopted by a group of Polish soldiers during World War II. Young readers can find out more about these real events, by exploring the sections at the back of the book, Photos of Wojtek and Friends, a Timeline of the events mentioned in the book, Maps of Wojtek's Travels, as well as sources to explore Wojtek's story. 

 

Award-winning author, Susan Hood interviewed a number of individuals including Barbara Alicia Janczak, granddaughter of Anatol Tarnowiecki, the lieutenant who purchased the bear cub for Irena Bokiewicz,  Dr. Andrzej Suchcitz a historian at the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum, and Wojciech Narebski, the only surviving member of the 22nd Artillery Supply Company.

Hood explains the context of the story in her Author's Note at the beginning, describing how the conflict in Poland led to refugees streaming into the Middle East. There is also a list of the major characters in the story so readers will understand how they are connected. With the stage now set, readers can follow events through the years of the war, as Wojtek grows from a cuddly bear cub to a playful adult bear and finally to a soldier in the Polish artillery where he helped his fellow soldiers!

Helping with the storytelling, are the colourful illustrations by artist Jamie Green who used Procreate to create the digital illustrations. Older readers are encouraged to follow the story with Soldier Bear by Dumon Tak.

Book Details:

Brothers In Arms by Susan Hood
New York: HarperCollins Children's Books      2022
48 pp