A review by snowbenton
The Hidden Life of Wolves by Jamie Dutcher, Jim Dutcher

3.0

This book tried to be an insight into the authors' experience with the Sawtooth Pack that they essentially built and raised and let remain wild while also being a plea to protect wolves. Unfortunately, while both are worth learning about, the book itself feels disjointed and heavy and leans in to the pathos a little too hard. Almost every photo caption is pulled from the text, which makes reading this feel repetitive like a children's textbook. My edition also has a sentence that just ends mid-stream on page 64 and does not ever get finished in the book, which is extremely disappointing considering this was published by National Geographic.

I loved the photos and insights from the Dutchers on their experiences with the pack. And I completely understand why we should all care that the wolf population is allowed to return and thrive. And I find it incomprehensibly evil that in a budget bill, it was put forth and passed that wolves are no longer protected in the US by the Endangered Species Act. But the book itself is meh. It's too depressing to recommend to kids and not thought-provoking enough to recommend to adults.