The Last Wild

Starred review from December 16, 2013
In this offbeat semi-apocalyptic fantasy, debut novelist Torday introduces 12-year-old Kester Jaynes, a prisoner at Spectrum Hall Academy for Challenging Children. Kester’s world was turned upside down by the death of his mother six years earlier (he hasn’t spoken since). The larger world is in tumult, too, wrecked by global warming and “the red-eye,” which killed off most animal life and threatens humans with extinction. One day, Kester is stunned to discover he can communicate with cockroaches, pigeons, and other “varmints,” who ask him for help: “*Come with us now, Kester Jaynes. Or rot here forever. The choice is yours.*” With the aid of the varmints, Kester escapes from Spectrum Hall and learns that he is the chosen savior of “the last wild,” the few remaining animals on Earth. A sort of dystopian Winnie-the-Pooh, Torday’s story is alternately somber, thrilling, and silly, filled with eccentric human and animal characters with distinctive voices. That includes Kester—although his fellow humans see him as silent, his courage, actions, and growth speak volumes. Ages 8–12. Agent: Clare Conville, Conville & Walsh.

Narrator Oliver Hembrough gives voice to the thoughts of Kester, a mute teen who is incarcerated. Kester realizes that he can communicate with the last remnants of wildlife in a world in which nearly all creatures have died from the deadly red-eye virus. A group of animals helps him escape and looks to him as the savior of "the last wild." Hembrough's dynamic narration adds suspense, even when the story occasionally becomes predictable. His performance features two standout characters, a befuddled white pigeon who squawks jumbled commentary and a cockroach who gruffly barks militaristic orders as he rides safely in Kester's pocket. Hembrough's English accent suits this dystopian adventure, which is peppered with British words that are uncommon in the American lexicon. L.T. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine