Rachel Reviews: The Wolf Wilder by Katherine Rundell

I am so glad I discovered Katherine Rundell. This has been one of the best things that I can take away from 2023 - The Golden Mole was a revelation and, when I discovered that she also wrote fiction, it was only a matter of time until I sought her out.

I was lucky enough to be gifted this novel for Christmas and what a delight it was. I do not always have as much time as I would like to dedicate myself to exploring any children's fiction and tend to concentrate on my adult fiction library as well as books that I have agreed to review. One exception to this was the Sylvia Plath poetry book recently which was a bit of a departure but it was short and devoured in one bite.

The Wolf Wilder brought me back to what is good about children's books. It has the hint of otherworldliness in parts; it has humour; it has friendship; it is dark in places, quite threateningly so; it has uplifting moments that are simple and heartwarming; it shows how courage can be shown in the most dire of circumstances. It is what you would expect from a traditional fairytale and it was, it has to be said, refreshing to read on so many levels.

Rundell has included a preface which sets the tone, explaining what the wolf wilder does and whilst I am not sure about how accurate this is in terms of the history of wolves in Russian aristocratic houses, its truth is not important to the understanding of her story. I'm not going explain this - you can find that out for yourself. Spoilers at a minimum here.

We meet Feodora and her mother, Marina in their remote homestead with their wolf companions and the book explodes into action with an encounter which is intimidating and throws us into Rundell's created world with the impact comparable to having a snowball to the face- shocking, stark and brutal.

Feo is a girl whose friends are wolves; and yet, paradoxically, they are not friends either as she has a healthy respect for the fact that they are wild animals and treats them as such. However, there is a fierce loyalty between species which provides a warmth to the novel, of camaraderie and strength and reliance as well as resilience and courage. When Feo finds herself faced with her worst fear, it seems like she has been left alone but actually, she is far from it.

Her quest to save those who matter most to her and vanquish her worst enemy takes her away from everything that she has known but also towards knowledge about a life that could be known to her or which could run alongside her current existence. It exposes her to a life that she would not have experienced if hardship had not been brought to her door.

I liked this book very much. I liked the threat facing Feo and how she faced it; I liked the relationships formed within the book; I liked the inclusion of wolves; I liked the fact that Rundell presented the darkness of the world but also that with hope, optimism and a collective approach, this can be conquered. I also liked the fact that there was loss but that this did not dominate nor get glossed over.

This was, on all levels, a great book.

Rachel Rating: 4/5 stars

Parts of the review were first published on Reedsy Discovery:

If you would like to explore other reviews of Katherine Rundell's work, please check out the links below. I can't recommend her enough.

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