Reviews

Wolf by Rachael Ball

mogojojo1013's review

4.0

This book tells the story of a boy (Hugo) who loses his father. It shows the ways he and his family deal with their grief, with moving to a new home, and all the changes that happen after that. Hugo becomes obsessed with the idea of a time machine. If only he could go back in time, he could save their dad and everything would go back to normal. It takes a helping hand from an unlikely source to teach him how to deal with a life that doesn't turn out the way you might've liked, and how to make the most out of it.

The illustrations in this graphic novel are done in pencil, the graphite giving the images an interesting texture. The artist could've done a bit better of a job getting a wider range in values, as that would give the images a bit more depth. The symbolism behind the lack of color would be more meaningful if the beginning of the story, before the father dies, was in color. A book completely without color feels a bit flat.

The story itself is well told, Hugo is easy to connect with and have empathy for. His struggles to overcome the loss of his father tug at the reader's heartstrings. It has a great story arc, and great character development, watching the family go from fractured, to mending.

All in all a good book.

rach3b's review

3.0

Cute but sad

lizardcha's review

adventurous dark mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent

Moderate: Death and Cancer

sadtiredqueer's review

5.0

A beautiful story about how a little boy copes with the grief of losing his father. You really see the pain the family experiences and the shift in emotions and family dynamics that come with loss. The connection to the Wolf Man is beautiful and the way that grief follows the boy around throughout the story is thoughtful and pulls on the heart strings. It was hard for me to put this one down. Finished it in a few sittings. Love the art style and would love to see more from this author

tsubhdearg's review

challenging emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

mekeisha's review

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

mahimaher's review

2.5

hailbeyond's review

4.0

:'(

bluepigeon's review

4.0

Wolf by Rachael Ball is a great example of how simple pencil drawing can be beautiful, profound, and atmospheric. The story is classic coming-of-age for the main character, Hugo, who suffers an older brother and sister, a pretty awesome mom, and the recent and sudden loss of his father. Hugo's still thinking and talking of his father in the present tense, when he decides to build a time machine (I mean, THE time machine from the film [based on the book]) to, well, find his dad. There's one tiny problem: the child-eating monster of a man (wolfman!) living next door to their new house has a past Hugo needs.

Ball's lettering threw me off a bit; somehow felt like everyone was yelling all the time (though nothing was capitalized).

Recommended for those who like bicycles, windy storms, and spiders.