"Little Mary and the Big Bear" by Gretchen Woelfle

<p><em>When Mary's papa announces he can't go to the mill because Buttercup is about to have her calf, nine-year-old Mary begs to go alone. Her mother calls her dauntless, her father gives in and Mary sets off on Old Major. But neither Mary nor Old Major are prepared to meet the biggest bear even seen in the Maine woods.</em></p>