Synopses & Reviews
During a semester in the wilderness, sixteen year- old Sib expects the tough outdoor education program and the horrors of dorm life, but friendship drama and love that gets complicated? That will take some navigating.
New girl Lou has zero interest in fitting in, or joining in. Still reeling from a loss that occurred almost a year ago, she just wants to be left alone. But as she witnesses a betrayal unfolding around Sib and her best friend Holly, Lou can't help but be drawn back into the land of the living.
In this tender, funny story of first love, good friendship, and going a little bit wild, Fiona Wood introduces two unforgettable girls who discover that before you can be true to yourself, you have to figure out exactly who you are.
Review
* "In alternating points of view-Lou's lyrical journal entries and Sib's first-person narrative-Wood builds a believable story of misguided friendship, betrayal, and empowering growth...With exceptional candor, honesty, and nuance, Wood tells a heartening and compelling story of the importance of agency, self-confidence, and true friendship."--Booklist (starred review)
Review
"A beautifully crafted novel with achingly real characters that I couldn't get out of my head."--Melina Marchetta, author of the Printz Award-winning Jellicoe Road
Review
"A writer to continue to watch."--Kirkus Reviews
Review
* "Wood eloquently traces the emotional growth of two girls during their high school's required nine-week term of outdoor education...[Sib and Lou's] voices reverberate with honesty, vulnerability, and deep emotions and will leave a lasting impress on readers."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Review
"Sharp, true, and achingly honest, Wildlife totally gave me the feels. I got lost in this smart and beautiful book."--Siobhan Vivian, author of The List
Review
Praise for Wildlife:A Booklist Magazine's 2014 Editors' Choice
"Enchanting...[Wood's] unsentimental rendering of the glorious, messy rush of first love elevate Wildlife far beyond standard kids-at-camp fare. The wilderness is exquisitely described, and when it comes to what's on everyone's mind, Wood is frank but never crude, and often hilarious...Wood tackles big themes head-on: identity, friendship, justice, love, death. Her characters are all compelling and believable."
--New York Times Book Review
Review
"The mounting interpersonal tension will keep readers deeply engrossed, as will the narrators' honesty and humor...This exceptional novel is Australian author Wood's American debut, but readers will want to get their hands on her first book, Six Impossible Things."--The Horn Book
About the Author
Fiona Wood lives in Melbourne, Australia. Wildlife is her first novel published in the United States. She has worked as a screenwriter for more than ten years, and her first novel, Six Impossible Things, was short-listed for the Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year (Older Readers).Wildlife won the Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year Award (Older Readers) and has been short-listed for the Queensland Literary Award, the Victorian Premier's Literary Award, and the Ethel Turner Prize, and long-listed for the Gold Inky Award. Find Fiona online at fionawood.com.