[TRIGGER WARNING: this book is about rape and therefore will discuss the rape that occurs in the book] 
 I think that as I've gotten older I can only read one book that is centered around rape a year. And I think it's because as I've gotten older I've realized that this actually could happen to me. Whenever I read a book with that theme I can only think about what I would do if I was in her shoes or if my friend was in her shoes. So out of all the books centered around sexual assault/rape, I'm glad that I chose to read this one. 
 Last year I read All the Rage by Courtney Summers. That book was about a girl who was raped at a party by a boy she had a crush on and it focused on the aftermath as her town and friends failed to support her. Exit, Pursued by a Bear couldn't be more different. Hermione was raped at cheer camp by an unknown assailant. She had no recollection of the event, but she did have a strong support group. 
 Polly is amazing. She sticks by Hermione and helps her anyway that she can. If I was ever put in a similar situation I would want a Polly by my side and I certainly hope that if a friend was in Hermione's role that I would be a Polly for her as well. 
 The cheer squad is great too (total squad goals). Most of them were supportive (even though some made mistakes early on not quite knowing the details/how to react). I liked how this book addressed how rape effects family and friends as well. The cheer squad felt guilty for not noticing something was wrong and that she was missing sooner. Her parents felt guilty over being out of the country when it happened. 
 The book is told in four parts: (view spoiler)[ pre-rape, post-rape, post-abortion, and returning to the camp for nationals (if I recall correctly, they correspond to the seasons as well) (hide spoiler)]. I liked how it was split because you can see how Hermione, her friends, and her family react and all heal in very distinguished parts. One of my favorite scenes of the book is the (view spoiler)[abortion scene. I know that probably sounds morbid, but I liked how Hermione actually went through with it and wasn't guilt tripped afterwards. The scene where she was in the recovery room and felt such comradery with other women who got abortions made me cry. But unlike every other time in this book, they were tears of happiness because I can't recall an abortion being treated positively in books (especially YA books) or media in general. (hide spoiler)] 
 Can we also talk about how rad Reverend Rob and Coach Caledon are? I mean Rev. Rob isn't in the book for long but he's amazing and is portrayed positively. Usually religious figures are seen as a caricatures and stereotyped in books and media so I loved this representation. I loved Caledon. She is amazing and helps Hermione through so much. I loved her. 
 But unfortunately I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style. Johnston's writing style reminded me of I.W. Gregerio (sp?), another author who's writing style I didn't enjoy. It all felt detached and was written using all telling no showing. This was very different from writing a character who is so numb that they are detached from the narrative (e.g., All the Rage). Perhaps it stemmed from the book talking place over nearly a year in less than three hundred pages, or perhaps it's just how the author writes. Nonetheless, I didn't enjoy it. Also Hermione's inner monologue was written like a diary and the style just wasn't for me. So it's mostly a personal preference. There were other personal preferences with the plot that made me dock it a star (view spoiler)[(e.g., the speech at the beginning of cheer camp talking about their school's death/pregnancy "curse" seemed a bit like a ghost story, didn't have anything to do with cheerleading, and it rubbed me the wrong way. Plus I can see how someone could victim blame and spin it as a "she brought it on herself" thing (which is totally BS) by saying that each year a girl in their class gets pregnant and that she had to fill the role. But I did like the scene where Polly and Hermione visit Clare's grave. The "Just the four of us" part took me off guard because at first I thought didn't her mom drive home? until I realized that the fourth person was the unborn fetus. I may or may not have cried...okay, I totally did cry) (hide spoiler)] 
 Don't judge the book based on the shitty Goodreads summary (Veronica Mars meets Shakespeare?!? Seriously, did the person writing the review even read the fucking book?). This is an important book that focuses on friendship. I love that and I think that as long as it's not triggering for you, then you should give Exit, Pursued by a Bear a shot. 
 Some of my favorite quotes: 
 -"Words are changing and I'm becoming an expert at translation" (page 73) 
 -"He's afraid that if he touches me, I'll forget that he's my dad, not my rapist. 
 So he doesn't hug me. He just stands there, looking at the new carpet. And finally, finally, I really start to cry" (page 82) 
 -"If you're nice to a boy, they think you're flirting" (page 88) 
 -"Do you ever dream of the day when your life can no longer be adequately summarized by Kelly Clarkson songs?" (page 166) 
 -(view spoiler)["Mum has a problem with movies now. She can't watch people get closure because it kills her" (page 213) (hide spoiler)] 
 ***TRIGGER WARNINGS: R, bullying, drugging a person, (some) victim blaming