Do, Ahn and Ley, Jeremy (illus.)Wolf Girl #1: Into the WildMarch 18, 2025 by HarperCollins
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Gwen and her family are evacuating their home, quickly gathering supplies and piling in the car to join others who are fleeing an unspecified threat. They are in a line of vehicles on the highway when explosions occur and their vehicle is rear ended. The parents tell the girls to run into the woods, and Gwen sees airplanes strafing the area. She falls and is unconscious for a while, and when she comes to, can't find her family. Once she regains consciousness, she licks water off of leaves and is befriended by a small canine she calls Puppy. When Gwen falls into a rushing river, she is rescued by a group of Puppy's friends (pictured on the cover). The pack heads back to the highway and subsists for a very long time on the food left in the cars. THey find another dog, Brutus, who seems dangerous until they feed him. Gwen also rescues an eaglet, that helps the group with food. Puppy is a big help when Gwen is occasionally injured, and after he fends off a wild boar, she renames Puppy "Sunrise". Eventually, the group happens upon other people, but the men take Gwen and put her in a van. The story ends abruptly and is "to be continued".
Strengths: This is a short, fast-paced book with delightful illustrations, which will remind older readers of George's My Side of the Mountain. Surviving in the wilderness would be much easier with a pack of loyal dogs and an eagle! I appreciated that the requisite wild animal attack was a boar instead of a bear; I suspect that this is set in Australia, which would explain this choice. Gwen doesn't have any special survival skills, and she was smart to go back and get supplies from cars, and live in one as well.
Weaknesses: I find books that seem realistic but don't specify a setting to be discombobulating. There is a note that the author left Vietnam when he was three under very difficult circumstances, so I'm sure this is meant to address that in a fictional way, but not having a place and time set was a bit confusing. There's also a chapter on Gwen's dog, Molly, dying long before the evacuation that seemed unnecessary.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who liked Pennypacker's Pax or Freeman's Alone.
Strengths: This is a short, fast-paced book with delightful illustrations, which will remind older readers of George's My Side of the Mountain. Surviving in the wilderness would be much easier with a pack of loyal dogs and an eagle! I appreciated that the requisite wild animal attack was a boar instead of a bear; I suspect that this is set in Australia, which would explain this choice. Gwen doesn't have any special survival skills, and she was smart to go back and get supplies from cars, and live in one as well.
Weaknesses: I find books that seem realistic but don't specify a setting to be discombobulating. There is a note that the author left Vietnam when he was three under very difficult circumstances, so I'm sure this is meant to address that in a fictional way, but not having a place and time set was a bit confusing. There's also a chapter on Gwen's dog, Molly, dying long before the evacuation that seemed unnecessary.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who liked Pennypacker's Pax or Freeman's Alone.
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