A review by haybat
Wildwood by Colin Meloy

3.0

Wildwood tells the story of Prue, whose brother is stolen out of her red radio flyer wagon by a murder of crows and whisked off into the "Impassable Forest," where Prue has been forbidden to go. We follow her adventures as she discovers a secret magical world inside these woods, which she must navigate to find and rescue her brother. The story is set in Portland and there are some hipster undertones to the whole tale. At first, Wildwood made me nostalgic for childhood days spent roaming around the neighborhood on bikes with my siblings and neighbor friends and playing make-believe games in the woods. But as we are drawn further into the world and the novelty of the nostalgia fades, it becomes difficult to remain invested in the story. The characters seem small and far away, lacking any relatable personality traits. The world itself feels like a folksy political satire, with its dysfunctional government and warring factions of anthropomorphic birds and forest creatures. There is no magic or wonder to it. It took me a very long time to read. By the time I realized I was bored, I had come too far to turn back so I kind of forced myself to keep going. There are still parts of the book to enjoy. The plot is imaginative and unspools the way a make-believe game might, one fantastical development after another. And of course, the illustrations are lovely. I'm glad that I read this, but probably won't continue with the series. If you even liked this a little, I recommend The Trilogy of Two by Juman Malouf.