Customer Reviews

A Walk in Wolf Wood

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In this tale Mary Stewart departs from her usual romanctic suspense to write a charming tale for children. At 12, I found this book most exciting and a fun memorable read. The main characters are children who find themselves thrust back in time and unraveling a mystery as the aid a kindly werewolf. Older readers, more familiar with books such as Thornyhold and Touch Not the Cat may not find the plot engaging. However, you may consider buying it for your child or grandchild instead. A world of fantasy and suspense awaits within the pages of this book.

"A Walk in Wolf Wood" is one of the lesser-known works of Mary Stewart, famed for her Merlin trilogy. It's an enjoyable short fantasy, with good heroes and an original plotline focusing on betrayal, time-travel, werewolves, and a royal intrigue that sucks in two modern children.

John and Margaret are on a family picnic with their parents, who doze off and allow the kids to go wandering in the woods. When they see a man dressed in sumptuous clothes from the Middle-Ages, naturally they are intrigued. As they follow him, they find a golden pendant, the tracks of a wolf, and a ramshackle cottage where the man is sleeping.

The man, they find, is a nobleman named Mardian who was betrayed by a sorcerer, in an effort to alienate him from his lord and friend Duke Otho. Mardian was transformed into a werewolf -- man by day, wolf by night -- and is hunted by the Duke's men. Mardian's main goal, however, is to save Otho and his son Crispin from Almeric's plots and sorcery. But he can't go near the castle. So John and Margaret agree to infiltrate the castle and try to defeat Almeric -- a task which proves much more difficult than they had thought.

Mary Stewart writes a simply-plotted but enjoyable story, with an interesting storyline and a quick pace. Her third-person writing style makes it a little difficult to get into the heads of the lead characters, but they are still very engaging. Her descriptions of the castle, the forest, and the people around Margaret and John are detailed without being too much so. And her handling of such worn ideas as werewolves and time-travel are deft and cliche-less.

Margaret and John are the now-classic British-kids-on-vacation, who stumble onto something strange and get sucked into an adventure. They're moderately smart, a little confused, and quite willing to go along with whatever strange things are going on. Mardian is a quiet, tragic type who is determined to
fix the situation in the castle, while Almeric is simply pure evil. Prince Crispin is a good supporter to the two leads, though not quite as interesting as they are.

This is an enjoyable fantasy for all ages, with good plotting and a classic pair of lead characters. "Walk" goes plenty of places, all of them interesting.

The lady master suspense novelist has tried her hand at a children's book and come up with a beautiful piece of escape literature. Not only is the work well-written, but it gives a bit of kind attention to the oft' abused subject of werewolves. It is a whimsical flight of fantasy somewhat akin to the Narnia series in its spirit. Those who like to see werewolves without the mindless gore that customarily accompanies their presentation will appreciate this book, though it was certianly not originally intended to fascinate an adult audience.

I think tht this is a great book. I liked it because I like to read fantasy books. The begining was a little bit boring. As I read the book got better and better. A Walk In Wolf Wood makes you think "What is going to happen next?". Well to make this short anyone who likes fantasy books should read this.

"All Mary Stewart's devoted readers will recognize in this magic tale her gifts as an incomparable storyteller. It is a children's story, but not for children only." While their parents are sleeping after a picnic in Germany's Black Forest, John and Margaret witness a haunting sight: a young man wearing a medieval "costume" runs past them, weeping. The kids are immediately curious and compassionate; they follow the trail to a deserted, dilapidated hut, where they feel he must live.

They also rescue a huge wolf by redirecting a determined hunting party. Eventually their persistence is rewarded: the man-wolf returns in human form, to entrust them with his tale of betrayal and evil enchantment into a part-time werewolf. (Like the movie, LADYHAWK) He requests their aid to free himself, the Duke and his young son from Almeric's scheme to claim the throne. Soon the children embark on a daring enterprise: to sneak into what appears to be a ruined cas! tle, in order to show the special medallion/amulet to the sickly Duke.

The three conspirators trust the Spell (which obliterates all traces of the 20th century) to help them prevent Almeric's cruel plot from succeeding. Magically they can speak archaic German and seem to "know things" which they did not learn in school. Although the children try to convince themselves that it is all a dream, Lord Mardian explains; "This is real, as your own time is real, and there is suffering to be won or to be escaped from. It is for you to choose. Choice is man's right..."

Complete with medieval vocabulary to stretch your memory of history, sinister villain, unsuspecting human quarry, this book reads swiftly. The delightful text is enhanced by (too few) black and white drawings by Emanuel Schongut, whose wolf leaps out beyond the frame of his illustrations. Since the children can not choose when to operate the time-travel aspect of their adventure, they mus! t be flexible and trusting. Reminiscent of CASTLE IN THE AT! TIC (time travel, evil enchanter, importance of a medallion), WALK IN WOLF WOOD offers delicious literary transportation back into the realm of Fairy Tale and Fantasy. Thoroughly enjoyable if you are a kid at heart!

Mary Stewart is best known for her Merlin-themed books (including "The Crystal Cave"), which are geared toward slightly older readers, but "A Walk in Wolf Woods", (along with "The Little Broomstick" and "Ludo and the Star Horse" are wonderful books to make accessible to younger readers. Told in clear, descriptive prose, with plenty of adventure and mystery, plus a few nuggets of wisdom, Stewart's novels are a great addition to any child's library.

John and Margaret Begbie are enjoying a holiday picnic when they are distracted by the sight of a distraught, weeping man rushing into the forest. Even odder, the man appears to be dressed in clothing from another era: a tunic and hose, cloak and knife, and a beautiful gold medallion. Compelled to follow him, the children creep into the forest till they reach a ramshackle cottage where they hear an extraordinary story from its inhabitant. The weeping man is Lord Mardian, and the gold medallion was a gift from his dearest friend Duke Otho. But thanks to an evil enchanter named Almeric, the friendship has been sundered and Mardian is cursed to roam as a wolf whenever the sun goes down.

The children have inadvertently time-shifted back into the 13th century, and Mardian sees in them the chance to see things set right. Lending them his gold medallion, he charges them with the task of delivering it into the hand of Duke Otho and explaining his story to his former friend. Then perhaps, the spell will be broken. But the children must first adjust to life in the distant past, and the wiles of the evil Almeric, who has disguised himself as Mardian and dwells within the court itself, whispering poison in the ears of Otho's son Crispen.

"A Walk in Wolf Woods" is a pleasant and exciting read for the under-10s, and is of particular interest is the way Stewart incorporates legitimate information about the medieval period into the text, as well as paragraphs of unsurpassed wisdom. How many children's books do you read these days that has a paragraph like this in it: "They knew that, if you find some person or creature in desperate need of help which you can supply, you have a human duty to supply it, even if it could inconvenience you or even hurt you to do so. This, after all, is how the greatest and best deeds in the world have been done, and though the children did not say this aloud, they knew it inside themselves without even thinking about it."

It isn't all perfect; a character named Lady Blancheflower is introduced as a possible threat to the children (having seen them outside the castle walls) only to totally disappear from the action, and Almeric is a trifle bland as the lead villain (he's your typical tyrant who wants to take over the land), but nonetheless, this is a top-notch novel for young readers.

I really liked the book A Walk in Wolf Wood because it was a good easy read. Although it was easy to read it was not a boring book. I love books that take place in the Middle Ages like this one. It is full of enchantments and friendships. Parts of this book reminded me of Harry Potter books. This book kept me on my toes to find out what would happen next. There was always a new twist or turn when I thought that I had it figured out. The end was great, not one of those that let you down.

John and Margaret are on a picnic vacation with their parents. They wander off on their own often, as children usually do, to discover new grounds and seek adventure. They get that and a whole lot more when they encounter a strange man in what appears to be medieval garb. The man is, in fact, from the fourteenth century. Mardian is the dark and brooding sort. He has every reason to be that way. After all, he has been cursed by a sorcerer. He shifts into a wolf at night and is unable to rescue his friend and son from certain danger. He cannot enter the castle where they reside. How will he be able to reverse the spell on him and approach Duke Otho (his friend)? In his most desperate time, two children appear as if from nowhere and offer to help...

Mary Stewart is a wonderful author who wrote romantic suspense/gothic novels from the fifties well into the early nineties. She also wrote the Merlin novels, which I haven't read. I picked up A Walk in Wolf Wood with a great deal of curiosity. It is a mixture of children's fantasy, historical, paranormal and time travel. So, of course, I had to pick this one up. At first, I thought I'd picked up a book from an author whose name was Mary Stewart, not the author of Nine Coaches Waiting and Madam, Will You Talk? But the further I read, the more I realized the author is the one and the same. I marvel at her versitality. She, like Daphne du Maurier, had dared to go outside the box and write various genres. She does a decent enough job with the fantasy genre here. This is written in third person, which isn't as enthralling as her first-person books, but things improve as the story goes on. The style in this book is similar to that in Thornyhold, with the same magic elements. This is a fun read, great for anyone from ages ten forward. However, Stewart does not shine here as much as in The Ivy Tree and The Moonspinners, so I think I'll stick to Stewart's romantic suspense work from now on.

Because I have loved Mary Stewart books since I was an adolescent I was drawn to read Walk in Wolf Wood when I discovered it on the library shelves as an adult. I was not disappointed in this tale by the master storyteller I knew she was. I read it as a young mother and then on two different occasions to my children. Each time as we neared the last few chapters we had a difficult time putting the book down. I think Mary Stewart did a wonderful job weaving this medieval tale. It was exciting, suspenseful and heartwarming. I am surprised at those readers who claimed the story was not up to par. I wish Mary Stewart would write more children's books such as this.

The reading age on this book is, I'd say, 10 and up. It is still interesting to me, as an adult. It is literary and well-written, unusual and welcome attributes for children's books.

There is no bad language, no crudity, no violence. And yet, there is wonderful suspense and the need for two children, siblings, to behave cleverly and heroically.

This is well-written fiction for kids. Nice.