The Burning Mountain

A volcano is waking. A team is ready.
US English edition

When the ground twitches beneath Monty's boots on the survey ledge, he knows the quiet is over. The Burning Mountain, silent for generations, is stirring, and a whole village lies in its path.

No superheroes are coming. Instead, there's a team: bear engineers with instruments, plans, and each other. As ash falls, bridges fail and the lake begins to boil, Lina listens to what the mountain is saying, Gertie plans for survival, and Axel flies the run no one else can.

You can't stop a volcano. But you can be ready for it.

Look first. Then think. Then move.

Perfect for fans of The Wild Robot, I Survived, and Frank Einstein. The Burning Mountain kicks off the BEAR Facts of Engineering series, an adventure where engineering is the superpower and the real heroes are a team.

What makes this series different:
• Real engineering, real adventure. Every bear engineer brings an actual discipline, from demolition to smart materials, and every solution is grounded in how the world really works.
• 46 illustrations bring the story to life, including chapter banners, full-page scenes, and character portraits of the BFOE team.
• Team-first storytelling. No lone hero here. The BFOE team succeeds together, and every bear gets their moment.
• Frightening things happen. Nobody faces them alone, and nobody panics. Kids finish this book wanting to build something.

And when they finish it, they can. The story ends, and Axel hands over the controls: "You've read what we built. Your turn now." Inside the back of the book:
• The BEAR Engineering Challenge: two hands-on build-and-test challenges drawn from the same problems the team faced when the mountain came for the bridge
• The STEM Behind the Story and The Real Burning Mountain: the true science and engineering underneath the adventure
• Meet the BFOE Team: every bear engineer and their real discipline
• A glossary of real engineering terms, connected to the free interactive glossary at bfoe.kids

For readers ages 8 to 12 who love adventure, animals, and figuring out how things work, and for the parents and grandparents looking for a book their kids will actually want to read.

"A powerful STEM adventure that shows young readers what engineering really means when the world is unpredictable... teamwork, responsibility, and the courage to act with incomplete information."
Alan Chen, CEO, Topkey Foundation Taiwan; Board Director, Disaster Network of Assistance Rotary Action Group (DNA-RAG)

The Burning Mountain is just the beginning. Book 2 takes the team into orbit. Book 3 heads for a tsunami. This is a series built to grow with your reader.

Engineering is the superpower.

The BEAR Facts of Engineering series is published by BFOE Mauritius and created by Martin Sansone and Jimmy Johnston MBE, the award-winning Glasgow technology teacher honored for a lifetime of service to children.