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Wolf Brother is the first book of six and begins The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness by Michelle Paver.
Torak is now alone and scared. His father is dead, slain by a demon in the form of a great bear. Torak must keep going; his only friend is another orphan, a small wolf cub. Evil stalks the forest and Torak must face a foe that stalks him silently and cannot be shaken.
Wolf Brother is an excellent book, highly researched and showing admirable attention to detail. The short, sharp chapters and wonderful world development creates a page-turner that can be finished without the reader even noticing they were getting near the end.
Wolf Brother has also brought a welcome breath of fresh air to the realm of children’s fantasy. JK Rowling’s successful Harry Potter series had resulted in a flood of teenage angst and magic type books that did not live up to the quality of Rowling’s inventions.
This a predominantly a young adults book, Torak is twelve and I was say that this is probably the optimum age to read it. Due to its subject matter, a young boy becoming orphaned and having to fend for himself in the wild, the tale is gritty and realistic and holds no punches when showing the harshness of the lives that was endured by Torak and the clans.
The wound in his arm burned, and with each breath his bruised ribs ached savagely, but he didn't dare stop.
The forest was full of eyes.
Birch trees whispered of his passing.
He begged them not to tell the bear...”
You can find that when judging the overall quality of a book there are two things that can be useful as a guide. Is the book re-readable with almost the same enjoyment and if it is part of a series, does it leave the reader wanting to learn more? The answer to both these questions is a definite yes.
The story is a rich tale full strong with the themes of survival, magic and folklore. Michelle Paver manages to install the same dreams in the reader’s head that she once had herself – the dream to run with wolves in a prehistoric forest.
Wolf Brother is a book for all ages; parents will enjoy reading this to their children almost as much as the children themselves enjoy hearing it. It is action packed, very fast moving and an instant connection is made with the reader. You are fully behind Torak from day one and the beautiful illustrations by Geoff Taylor combine to create the perfect package.
If there was one thing that made the book stand out from the rest it was the way in which Wolf Brother is not just told from the perspective of Torak, we also see the tale through the eyes of the wolf cub. This is a simple idea that is executed beautifully.
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Chrissy
Wonderfully amazing...
Sonic
Seriously, if you like fantasy, the forest and animals you will fall in love with this book. You can't stop from the moment you start reading it. At the end of every chapter, I mean EVERY chapter you HAVE to read on. I truly hope they make this book a movie.
Nick from Kentucky
The book "Wolf Brother" is one amazing book and is very detailed. When I opened the book to the first page and started to read I couldn't take my eyes out of the book. So the series should keep getting more books in it. I can't wait to read "Spirit Walker."
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