Review by Booklist Review
A full moon rises above the forest on the night when a wolf gives birth to her pups. Members of the pack watch over them as they nurse, sleep, and whimper. Soon, though still blind, the pups begin to explore. A storm causes rising waters, but older wolves carry the pups to higher ground, and after the skies clear, a crescent moon shines above them. The next night, with no moon, the older wolves are wary. No longer blind, the pups soon play the sunshine and under several more phases of the waxing moon. Twenty-eight days after their birth, they stand and "yip" together beneath the full moon. The lightly fictionalized narrative introduces children to the wolves and the phases of the moon, which goes through one complete cycle as the story progresses. Created with gouache, acrylics, pencil, oil pastels, and digital media, the illustrations effectively showcase both the wolves and the moon, while the rhythmic, rhyming verses include just enough information about the pups to interest young children. An attractive dual-topic picture book for animal lovers.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Rhyming quatrains by Garton Scanlon trace the birth and early lives of a litter of wolf cubs in this closely observed picture book marked by the moon's phases. After days of watchful nursing, "The pups, still blind but crawling,/ start to feel their way around.// Tiny paws find roots and rocks,/ but hardly make a sound." Drama arrives during a rainstorm: rising water threatens the pups, and older wolves help carry the litter to higher ground. As the moon wanes and nights turn darker, other threats loom, and the newly emboldened pups frolic and learn, maturing into playful youths over the next lunar cycle. Lush, deep blue multimedia spreads splashed with sunset tints by Groenink convey the majestic sweep of mountains and pine forests, and the animated facial expressions of the approachable-looking wolves. Notes about wolves' life cycle in North America and the moon's phases conclude. Ages 3--7. (Apr.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Young wolves go from helpless babes to howling pups over a lunar cycle. From the anticipation of their birth to their first venturing into the dangerous outside world, five wolf pups are protected by their mother and pack. Joining a long line of "How could these cuties ever become dangerous predators?" books about wolves, this title amps up the cuteness with cuddly illustrations. The pups stumble blindly and snuggle with their mother; as they mature, they frolic amid flowers and butterflies, wrestle playfully in the moonlight, and begin to eat meat. "The pups grow ever bolder. / They start to reach and range. / What is that? And who is this? / The whole wide world is strange!" The dangers of the outside world are downplayed and vague; all five survive to the end, when they howl at a glowing full moon. The rhyming couplets are effective, the drawings lush, and the unnamed pups adorable, their story told with the ever present moon cycle a reminder of time passing. An author's note and information on phases of the moon close out the work. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Irresistibly adorable wolf pups come of age in this attractive tale. (bibliography, internet sources) (Informational picture book. 3-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
