The Wolf Wilder: Katherine Rundell

Product Information

This book was very captivating and thrilling but was still poignant and moving. I think The Wolf Wilder shows how important it is to fight for the things you love and to have courage in tough times. I also liked the focus on the relationships the characters had in the book. Feo was friends with boys in the book and I thought it was good that Katherine Rundell kept them as friends. I was almost expecting her to have them go into a romantic relationship (which is a bit cliche) but the fact she didn’t made the book better. The descriptions of Russia in the book was beautiful. One of my favourite things that the books described was colours pouring out of the windows and onto the snow (as show on the cover). I think that this was a really unique description that definitely captured my imagination. I found this book captivating and exciting. A fast paced struggle of a young girl accompanied by wolves and a boy to save those she loves makes for an excellent story of friendships and trust. Nothing worth anything,” said one soldier. His eyes moved across her reindeer-skin bedspread and the hurricane lamp and came to rest on her skis, leaning against the fireplace. Feo ran to stand protectively in front of them. Read it: During the next snow storm; from the bottom of a dog pile; to your kids, no matter their age. If there was a second account on one of the other characters- perhaps the wolves would've been an amusing choice- it would've been nice to just switch things up.

Feo is my child. For God’s sake, do you not know what that means?” Marina shook her head incredulously. “She’s worth an entire army of men like you, and my love for her is a thing you should underestimate only if you have a particularly powerful death wish. The love of a parent for a child—it burns.” The culmination of the story and several of fight scenes throughout the book seemed too farfetched for children the size of adults to ride wolves like horses made you think perhaps these wolves were meant to be a different size to the ones in our world but this wasn't explained. The repetition of children getting the better of armed Russian guards became silly, one armed guard was taken out by a child's ballet manouevre The story alone is beautiful, but what brings it to the next level for me is the history. Learning about wolf wilding is awesome and man was that a profession in need of a novel if there ever was one. Even more, The Wolf Wilder is set in the waning period of Tsar Nicolas II’s reign. Without feeling remotely textbooky or infodumpy, there’s a lot of history laid out really subtly in The Wolf Wilder. Mama!” said Feo. She took a handful of her mother’s coat as Marina swept into the room, and held it tight.

About the contributors

I really loved this book. It had just lovely writing and a very fairy-tale like feel about it, though more action than you would usually find in a fable-like novel. Full disclosure: I received a free electronic ARC for review through Edelweiss. Mild trigger warning for sexual harassment of a minor.) you will keep your hands off my daughter if you value their current position at the ends of your arms."

My wolves?” Her mother’s face was steady, but her eyes were neither calm nor happy. “I do not own any wolves.” I confess, I am not one for the kind of fairy tale sought of plot or genre but this book is so good I would put it as one of the best books I have read in my short life.

The Wolf Wilder

I could understand all the characters emotions, for one thing, and I could picture every character in my head (the marvellous illustrations helped with that though). On the other side of the equation, Rundell periodically remembers that Feo is meant to be a young, not well-educated wild child who doesn't have substantial knowledge of the world outside her isolated woods. She conveys this through jokes that fall rather flat. For instance, when Alexei's sister describes him as an "agitator," Feo doesn't know the word, and assumes that she's being told that he's an alligator. "That just seems...so unlikely," she says, and they move on. Humans, on the whole, Feo could take or leave; there was only one person she loved properly, with the sort of fierce pride that gets people into trouble, or prison, or history books.

Once upon a time, a hundred years ago, there was a dark and stormy girl. Her name was Feodora. This is her story… In Rakov, it’s clear that the Romanovs weren’t doing a good job running the country. Corruption was everywhere, and the common folk were suffering. In Alexei, the hope of the revolution is visible. It’s no wonder Lenin seemed like a hero when he spoke of something different for Russia. It’s really well done. I’d also not read much set in this era that wasn’t about the Romanovs themselves or high society, so The Wolf Wilder really does some wonderful and original stuff. And it did start out really great- honestly, any story starting with Once upon a time… will have my utter and complete attention. It was really easy getting into Feo’s world, I could feel the cold of winter (even though it’s summer and hot as hell where I live), and the wolves breathing next to Feodora and every description was so visually pleasing.I sleep with a dictionary under my pillow, sometimes. Just to remind me that there are more words in the world than 'Come here, boy.'"

The only thing I would change was the character of the boy who accompanied Feo. He seemed to be very weak, then suddenly very strong with nothing really in between. I found this vexed me for I would have enjoyed watching the boy go through the journey slowly. Others may disagree with me, but that was how I found it. This also prevented me slightly from imagining the boy’s features for a while. A gorgeous flight of imagination set in a snowy Russian fantasy world, this has both the beauty and the fierce, funny and uncompromising storytelling style that sets Katherine Rundell's books apart. The Wolf Wilder is a Faberge egg of a novel - rich, bright and perfect Robin Stevens You both disgust me.” Rakov shook his head. “It is an abomination to live with those animals. Wolves are vermin with teeth.” While it's clearly geared toward younger readers, The Wolf Wilder is an enchanting fairy tale for those of all ages. the words make no justice for sadness and heaviness that coated my heart after the realization that thiswas what she choose to sing for Grey as a goodbyeIn both The Wolf Wilder and Rooftoppers the young male characters are very kind to the main female character. Did you set out to show young men in this way? Rakov treats their wolves with the same brutal contempt he shows to the peasants, and despite her reclusiveness, Feo finds herself fighting alongside her neighbours for what is right. ‘Wolves, like children, are not born to lead calm lives’we are told and this a marvellous adventure, original, beautifully written, and full of scenes and ideas that will excite and inspire young readers. All in all I thought the book was a well-written, fun book for those who are 9 years old and above. I would recommend it because I really enjoyed the content and how the book made me feel, which was emotional and satisfied. The book left me wanting a little more, so I would enjoy a sequel. Despite this, I think Katherine Rundell did an excellent job. The Wolf Wilder is Katherine Rundell's best book yet - precise, magical and wise - it's a story that will stay with you for a long time after you've read it. I absolutely loved it Sarah Crossan My first book of the year was Katherine Rundell's Rooftoppers, which I absolutely adored - it was magical and utterly charming, and it made me want to try more of her books. So, I put The Wolf Wilder on my list, and this has ended up being the book with which I completed my 2016 Goodreads reading challenge (my goal was 52 books)!