This is at best of tangential interest to wrestling fans but may be an intriguing read for some.

Andy Robin was a Scottish amateur and then professional wrestler who made a dozen or so TV appearances but was best known in his native country where he was part of the Eldorado All Stars in the always atmospheric Eldorado Stadium in Edinburgh.

The book instead deals with the other element of his fame, the nine-foot tall grizzly bear that he and wife Maggie considered part of the family.

There’s very little wrestling content here save for a chapter on Robin wrestling with Hercules highlighted by the bear’s initial refusal to perform while muzzled, a measure that the humans on hand understandably considered a dealbreaker.

Instead the book is about the relationship with Hercules and the sheer logistics of dealing with such a huge family member. The highlight is a section that makes up almost a third of the book covering the time Hercules — who like other grizzlies was a competent swimmer — went missing in the Hebrides for over a week.

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