Wildwood

kiwi100123 - This book is about Prue McKeel, whose life is turned upside down when a murder of crows abduct her brother, Mac. She follows them into the Impassible Wilderness, aka Wildwood, where she finds magical animals including talking coyotes, who capture her friend Curtis. Curtis had mischievously followed her. They are brought to complete different sides of the wood; Prue to the Governor-Regent Lars in the North wood, Curtis to the Dowager Governess Alexandra. The funny thing is, the folks in the North Wood think that the evil Alexandra had been killed long ago. This story has a twist of danger and peril, along with the lesson of the true meaning of love and trust. It is the story of Prue McKeel and her friend Curtis as they go on the improbable mission of Wildwood. I recommend this book to advanced readers who are looking for a book of adventure of peril and friendship.

July 18, 2011
Meloy, the lead singer of the band the Decemberists, delves into middle-grade fiction with a story that pairs classic adventure novel tropes with cool, disaffected prose. The book opens as 12-year-old Prue McKeel loses her baby brother to a murder of crows, and sets off to rescue him from the Impassable Wilderness, a strange country alongside Portland, Ore., (where the actual Forest Park lies). Her classmate Curtis tags along, and the two are soon separated. Prue takes refuge with the postmaster in his delivery van, while Curtis is captured, then suddenly made an officer in an army of talking coyotes led by the beautiful and intimidating Dowager Governess. It becomes apparent that Prue and Curtis have landed on opposite sides in a warâand neither side may be right. Without a good side to cheer for (disappointments and betrayals abound), the story lacks a strong emotional center, and its preoccupations with bureaucracy, protocol, and gray-shaded moral dilemmas, coupled with the book's length, make this slow going. Ellis's spot art, not all seen by PW, is characteristically crisp and formal, further lending the story a detached quality. Ages 8â12.