A WOLF STORY

by David McPhail ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 27, 1981

Derived, we're told, from a real incident, this tells of a timber wolf captured for a movie about a man who turns into a wolf. The wolf escapes, passes a schoolbus full of children, but is finally surrounded by army men with guns. Then the children from the schoolbus stream onto the scene, forming a human chain between the wolf and the guns until officials arrive and agree that the wolf should be returned to the forest. This would no doubt be an impressive incident in reality, but McPhail doesn't give it the ring of truth. Instead of giving us the children's viewpoint, he projects them, from a bystander's view, as angelic deliverers. In the pictures, his wolf is filled out in expressive detail, and noble enough. The rest is mostly sketchy washes, and handsome enough. But there's a cloying falseness to those children who are seen in focus, and a similar tone to the story, true or not.

Pub Date: April 27, 1981

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Scribners

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1981

Categories: CHILDREN'S