The Wolf Wilder

Oh my goodness. This book had me and my two sons hooked as soon as I started reading it to them. The first chapter was so riveting that we wanted so badly to just read through the whole thing (the chapters are each about 20 pages or more, other than a couple).I homeschool my sons and we were finishing up our lessons in learning about Russia, and this one was perfect. It explains in an intro what wilding was from the past Soviet Union culture and historically how people viewed and treated wolves. When the story actually begins it focuses on a pre-teen girl and her mother who live alone in a cabin in the woods wilding wolves. Government powers in the time of the tsar come through and try to control and hurt people throughout the surrounding areas and threaten the mother/daughter duo. This leads to an adventure and possible revolution to start.This book is so well written and amazing. There is violence, so be aware of that. It is definitely a chapter book that your pre-teens/teens can read and enjoy, and I think adults would enjoy it as much as I did too!

We tried this after falling in love with her book The Rooftoppers, but this book is quite different. Still has a great young girl protagonist, very brave and resourceful. However, there is a lot more darkness in this book and much less humor. There is death of characters you've grown attached to, there is the threat of death, and there is a lot of seriousness with very little levity. I ended up not reading it to my daughter because of these things. It is a good book, but a serious one. I loved the historical relevance, and Rundell is excellent at descriptive writing, it was just too dark for my little girl who is 7 and already suffers from too many fears. I strongly recommend Rooftoppers -- full of love and hope and another resilient, brave girl as the main character. Both books are good, just significantly different from each other.  Rooftoppers

My son has been reading only Wimpy Kid books and comic books, and I've been trying to nudge him toward better literature without turning him off the whole idea of reading by being too pushy. He eventually chose this book from a big stack of 10 books of all levels of silliness and complexity that I'd piled up for him. I thought it might be too dark, or the print too small, etc, and almost didn't include it. He picked it up and literally couldn't put it down for two days. Breakthrough in his reading development for sure.

Read the book with my daughter (grade 4). We both thought the story was compelling and enjoyed the main characters. However, although the ending is happy, the story can be quite intense and scary. The young main character is being hunted down by an evil general who wants her dead. He has already taken and imprisoned her mother. I think it depends on the sensitivity of one’s child, and what they have been already reading, but parents should be aware.

Although written for children it is a good read for any age. It was well written, drawing you into the story. The characters seemed real you could almost feel the cold and the story emotional with a magical backdrop. Of Russia in winter you could almost feel the fur and smell the scent of wolves showing them in a light not of fear but as a friend of people. Very enjoyable.

Thank you for sharing this with us. My husband and I both liked it. Will recommend to our oldest children with kids.

Great little read, this was just a simple and delightful tale - almost a fairytale, in a good way. Nice pace, recognisable setting, balanced a well written. I rally enjoyed this one.

The first chapter was a bit of a turn off, but we ultimately loved this book. Read it at night to my first and second graders and we were all sad when it was over. Great heroine for young girls!

As a librarian I read a lot, including children’s and young adult literature.My first impression of the paperback edition of this book (apart from the excellent cover illustration) was its weight: a hefty 450g, almost half a kilogram, so this is a well-made paperback that should withstand numerous readers.I suppose, to sum this book up: The story is utterly original. I find this very rare nowadays. The reader is dropped right into the story from page one and, from there, is taken on a breathless journey full of excitement, humour and tragedy. I just had to finish this book in one night as I couldn’t bear the thought of putting it down without knowing what would happen next. The story is a complete gem and it’s impossible to predict how it’s going to end or who is going to survive it. The author’s writing style is simply excellent, both in description and dialogue, entirely suitable for (brave) children and adults alike. It is also very enchanting in parts with classics of lines such as, “Wolves, like children, are not born to lead calm lives,” and “Once upon a time, a hundred years ago, there was a dark and stormy girl”. Such delicious prose!The relationship between Feo and her wolves is special and really beautiful, and is captured to perfection in the amazing illustrations by Gelrev Ongbico whom I googled as I was so impressed by his work in this book. It turns out that as someone based in the Philippines, he probably doesn’t have a lot of first-hand experience with either snow or wolves. Also, this was his first ever work for a children’s book. Knowing this about him, I find his gorgeous, atmospheric and poignant illustrations even more amazing.This is a true gem of a book which I hope will find many, many readers.

Set in Russia towards the end of reign of Tsar Nicholas II, Katherine Rundell's beautifully illustrated 'The Wolf Wilder' tells the story of twelve-year-old Feo (Feodora) who lives with her mother, Marina, in the woods and who, under the guidance of her wise mama, re-wilds wolves that have been kept by the Russian aristocracy as 'pets' and then abandoned once they realize that wolves can never really be tamed. Feo and Marina are known as wolf wilders and although their objective is to turn the wolves loose once they have learned how to take care of themselves, and many of them do return to the wild, there are three who haven't taken off into the wilderness and both Feo and Marina have developed a very close relationship with these three wolves. When General Mikail Rakov, a cruel and vicious soldier of the Russian army, arrives at Feo's home one bitingly cold day and accuses Feo and Marina of allowing their wolves to attack the Tsar's deer, the feisty Feo makes a bitter enemy of Rakov - a situation that results in Marina being taken prisoner and Feo having to escape into the forest with no one but her wolves for company. However, she soon makes friends with Ilya, a fourteen-year-old boy forced into the army by his father, who hates General Rakov and who promises to help Feo find her mother. Pursued by Rakov and his henchmen, Feo and Ilya race across the bitterly cold Russian landscape accompanied by the three wolves - who, although are still dangerously half-wild, remain loyal to Feo and are a great help to her in her endeavours to find Marina and to release her from the prison in St Petersburg in which the evil Rakov has incarcerated her...A magical and wonderfully atmospheric tale of family, friendship, solidarity and of standing up for oneself and a story that is filled with characters who dance across the pages - almost literally with regard to Ilya when we discover his ambition to leave the army behind and train to become a dancer at the Imperial Ballet School. Although I bought this very attractively presented children's novel for a young family member, I read it first (always do this with books I buy for children to ensure they're suitable) and was entertained throughout its length - and the black and white illustrations were particularly enjoyable to see and added greatly to the feel of the story. The young relative I bought this for has already read and very much enjoyed Ms Rundell's 'Rooftoppers', so I'm hoping she will find 'The Wolf Wilders' at least as good (I'll update this review once she has read it).4/4.5 Stars.

Review 5 starsThis was magical. A story that resonated with me – wolves, Russia, revolution, adventure, and the wolves. Plus, prose that was masterful.12-year-old Feo Petrovna and her mother, Marina, live in the snowbound Russian woods with a pack of wolves nearby. A pack of wolves that were once aristocrats’ tamed pets. But wolf wilder Marina, with Feo’s help, has helped the creatures discover how to be wolves. They all bear the scars – human and wolf - but these make them stronger and more prepared to face what is coming.“Wolves, like children, are not meant to lead calm lives.”― Katherine Rundell, The Wolf WilderThis is 1917 and revolution is coming. It arrives in their lives, and Marina is arrested by the local commanding officer Rakov. Dislikeable from the moment he appears and exerts his twisted authority, he becomes Feo’s foe as she attempts to save her mother – and the wolves.In her attempt, she is aided by the pack, who are complex and formidable characters – and tragic. Each has distinctive appearances and traits. Katherine Rundell excels not only in portraying multi-dimensional people in clear language but also creatures that are mysterious and faithful – faithful to the pack and those like Feo they trust.Feo’s escape with the wolves gains an unexpected ally - Ilya, a 13-year-old soldier boy. A reason to be wary, but Feo can sense his true nature – a skill she must have learnt as a wolf wilder-in-training. But are the wolves so trusting?“Wolves are the witches of the animal world.”― Katherine Rundell, The Wolf WilderWill the children and wolves survive to save Marina before Rakov can execute her in the face of the revolution aimed at him?I couldn’t stop reading the beautiful words of this unfolding story. I knew the history, but that was just a setting like the woods and weather, so lives were still at risk. The escape only set up more – more encounters, more conflict, more character, and a climax which ties everything together.The opening and the ending are beautiful bookends – crafted to perfection. This is a true ‘once upon a time’ about ‘a dark and stormy girl’.Wolf wilders may be a fiction, yet they are rooted in fact and in places might exist. Feo’s family feel real so that’s what matters.Another enjoyable read - suitably illustrated by Gelrev Ongbico - and highly recommended for anyone who likes entertaining historical fiction with strong MG protagonists.“Stories can start revolutions.”― Katherine Rundell, The Wolf WilderStory – five starsSetting/World-building – five starsCharacters – five starsAuthenticity – five starsStructure – five starsReadability – five starsEditing – five stars

I totally agree with the other 2 star reviews here. This started off so well, but became increasingly silly, unbelievable and predictable. I hated the subplot of the boy who wanted to become a ballet dancer - expected Julie Walters to turn up as plain-speaking, chainsmoking coach at any minute - and just to complete the cliche he said he never wanted to get married - for all male ballet dancers are gay, right? This episode was like a chapter from a completely different book.I wouldn't be surprised if this was made into an animated Disney film, complete with songs about how you can be whatever you want to be, mad, ugly, evil Russian soldiers and eyelashes on the female wolves. Loved the illustrations though.

Wow I loved this book. The book had me gripped from the start. I wanted to protect the wolves, and I had no idea how it would end, there were no easy answers and the problems the characters face seem impossible to overcome. I feared what would happen and hoped their bravery would win the day.This is well written and the descriptions are so vivid, and really comes to life, Katherine Rundell is a fantastic author and every book she writes is so different.This is a beautiful book and never giving up not matter how bad things get, or how impossible things seem. That is is OK to fear but to not be controlled by it.The characters are fantastic, they have depth and they seem so alive. I would love to see this book as a movie, even though I am not a big movie fan. I am in awe at the strength of character these child characters have. They are inspiring.