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4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
I agree with others who have reviewed this book. It is beautifully written but struggle with the young reader designation.
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
sad
This was a sad story ... on my WW2 shelf, even though the war was more background here (this taking place in a small town, with some boys off to war, prejudices in play). Slightly reminiscent of [book:To Kill a Mockingbird|2657] with a young, female protagonist and a town outcast living in the shadows.
This is a bookclub pick for my neighborhood group ... and there will be a ton to discuss. And as Annabelle says "But it’s important to look at how everything ended and not just what happened along the way."
* Audience: This has the appearance of a YA book ... the cover, the age of the MC ... some reviewers have complained that this should not be aimed at the middle-grades as it is too heavy. The author actually said she wrote it for adults (https://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/lauren-wolk-discusses-wolf-hollow/). There is some bullying/violence/evil that is a little hard to handle. Should this be recommended to teens? Unfortunately there is so much tragedy in the world today that I don't think this shows anything teens haven't had some experience with already.
* Origin Story: In the above mentioned article, it was interesting to note how much of the setting was based on her mother's early life. There is a Wolf Hollow that runs through a family farm. Pits were dug to catch wolves. Her mother had two brothers, walked to school with them. They did win a camera and a film. In the article, there is a rather graphic poem (per the grandfather's tale of how the town got it's name). The wolf story ... see in the spoilers below if you've read the book ...
*Milkweed: I had read about this in a different book (or two) ... it was gathered for the fluff, to fill life preservers (I have milkweed growing for monarchs).
* Prayer for Pain: Annabelle's "wishing" that Betty would get blisters, then feeling so guilty about it. Watch what you wish for, if you really get what you wish, do you want it? [book:Wish|52933643] imagines this ...
Some spoiler/discussions below...
* Betty ... I despise bullying (couldn't watch the IT movie with the cruelty of the kids there- worse than the infamous clown as it's more real), and this went beyond "bullying". It's hard to imagine a young girl being so evil (although, having read [book:If You Tell: a True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, and the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood|45299992] one can perhaps imagine what Betty might have grown up to be). Described as "dark-hearted" by Annabelle, incorrigible by adults.
* Wolf in a Pit: The grandfather tells a young Annabelle how the town got it's name (dug pits to trap the wolves, killed them, even the pups. Annabelle wonders why they didn't raise the wolf babies as dogs ... “A wolf is not a dog and never will be,” he said, “no matter how you raise it.” Betty is a wolf ... and ends up in a pit. Could she have been raised differently to be a different person or is she innately evil? The "kill baby Hilter" dilemma ... also seen in one of the [book:Gregor the Overlander Box Set|2281052] books when there is a chance to take out a child prophesied to destroy the world.
* Toby's Chosen Death: Why? Mom's idea that "think about how it feels when your hands are so cold they go numb. How it’s only when they start to thaw out that you realize how much they hurt.” Toby had a taste of normalcy and remembered what he was missing.
Overall, this book hit me hard in the feels - bumping the stars to 5 even though it isn't a perfect book. Yes, I'd recommend it to my mom, friends and bookclub. Some difficult/depressing moments, but lots of things to think about.
Looking forward to the bookclub discussion. There are discussion questions included at the end of the text too, and they were good and thoughtful things to think about (I'm not always impressed with the given "discussion questions" included in many books now).
First person/Past tense. Borrowed the book from my library - both audio and e-book available. My first read was with the audio edition - the narration was good (Emily Rankin, young sounding voice to match the MC. I did feel the need to speed up the narration slightly.
This is a bookclub pick for my neighborhood group ... and there will be a ton to discuss. And as Annabelle says "But it’s important to look at how everything ended and not just what happened along the way."
* Audience: This has the appearance of a YA book ... the cover, the age of the MC ... some reviewers have complained that this should not be aimed at the middle-grades as it is too heavy. The author actually said she wrote it for adults (https://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/lauren-wolk-discusses-wolf-hollow/). There is some bullying/violence/evil that is a little hard to handle. Should this be recommended to teens? Unfortunately there is so much tragedy in the world today that I don't think this shows anything teens haven't had some experience with already.
* Origin Story: In the above mentioned article, it was interesting to note how much of the setting was based on her mother's early life. There is a Wolf Hollow that runs through a family farm. Pits were dug to catch wolves. Her mother had two brothers, walked to school with them. They did win a camera and a film. In the article, there is a rather graphic poem (per the grandfather's tale of how the town got it's name). The wolf story ... see in the spoilers below if you've read the book ...
*Milkweed: I had read about this in a different book (or two) ... it was gathered for the fluff, to fill life preservers (I have milkweed growing for monarchs).
* Prayer for Pain: Annabelle's "wishing" that Betty would get blisters, then feeling so guilty about it. Watch what you wish for, if you really get what you wish, do you want it? [book:Wish|52933643] imagines this ...
Some spoiler/discussions below...
* Betty ... I despise bullying (couldn't watch the IT movie with the cruelty of the kids there- worse than the infamous clown as it's more real), and this went beyond "bullying". It's hard to imagine a young girl being so evil (although, having read [book:If You Tell: a True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, and the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood|45299992] one can perhaps imagine what Betty might have grown up to be). Described as "dark-hearted" by Annabelle, incorrigible by adults.
* Wolf in a Pit: The grandfather tells a young Annabelle how the town got it's name (dug pits to trap the wolves, killed them, even the pups. Annabelle wonders why they didn't raise the wolf babies as dogs ... “A wolf is not a dog and never will be,” he said, “no matter how you raise it.” Betty is a wolf ... and ends up in a pit. Could she have been raised differently to be a different person or is she innately evil? The "kill baby Hilter" dilemma ... also seen in one of the [book:Gregor the Overlander Box Set|2281052] books when there is a chance to take out a child prophesied to destroy the world.
* Toby's Chosen Death: Why? Mom's idea that "think about how it feels when your hands are so cold they go numb. How it’s only when they start to thaw out that you realize how much they hurt.” Toby had a taste of normalcy and remembered what he was missing.
Overall, this book hit me hard in the feels - bumping the stars to 5 even though it isn't a perfect book. Yes, I'd recommend it to my mom, friends and bookclub. Some difficult/depressing moments, but lots of things to think about.
Looking forward to the bookclub discussion. There are discussion questions included at the end of the text too, and they were good and thoughtful things to think about (I'm not always impressed with the given "discussion questions" included in many books now).
First person/Past tense. Borrowed the book from my library - both audio and e-book available. My first read was with the audio edition - the narration was good (Emily Rankin, young sounding voice to match the MC. I did feel the need to speed up the narration slightly.
I gave it 3 stars, but my 11 year old LOVED it. I didn’t dislike it, there are just other young adult books similar to this that I like more.
I just didn’t want to pick it up after stopping each time. The bullying, and judging of neighbors and just knowing it was going to be sadder still… I couldn’t keep going.
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced