Wolf-Woman (Hardcover)

~ Sherryl Jordan (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-9-A group of hunters find three-year-old Tanith living with a wolf pack, and their chieftain, Ahearn, decides to take her back to their village to become an adopted daughter for his wife, Nolwynn. Tanith's new mother becomes her only source of love and gentleness as she grows up in this brutal, savage clan that shuns and despises her because of her early feral upbringing. After Nolwynn's death, Tanith, now 16, seeks out her first family-the wolves-for solace and kinship. The only other person offering friendship and an opportunity to escape is Gibran, a neighboring village's chieftain's son. Now she is faced with choosing between her feelings for Gibran or the harmonious kinship offered by the wolves. The plot is based on an interesting concept with much potential, but it doesn't ring true. Auxiliary and even principal characters are not developed, and relationships are not fleshed out enough to give them dimension. Tanith is the most fully realized character, at times touching in her longing for companionship and belonging, but others are presented as either negative or positive, cruel or loving, with no depth. Even the young woman's relationships with pack members lacks conviction. She develops a psychic bond with Ashok, the alpha male, but her observation of and use of wolf behavior to gain acceptance is more like that of an observer than a community member.
Cynthia M. Sturgis, Ledding Library, Milwaukee, OR
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-9. Sixteen-year-old Tanith, raised by wolves and adopted as a young child by Chief Ahearn, knows that her black hair and glowing eyes make her an outsider in the golden-haired clan. Her tribe fears the wolves and brutally hunts and slaughters them, but Tanith is comforted by the beasts and drawn by their howls. When Ahearn is wounded and unable to lead his people, Tanith must choose among the unhappy but familiar world of her clan, a growing fondness for a young warrior of a neighboring tribe, and the lure of the wolf pack. Her story, steeped in prehistoric imagery and legend, is a compelling search for identity and self-worth within a richly drawn setting. With the pace of a campfire folktale, it will appeal to good readers who enjoy ancient lore. Candace Smith

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Hardcover: 162 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin (October 24, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395709326
• ISBN-13: 978-0395709320
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,059,691 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazingly Captivating, August 1, 2004

By	Evanescence "starz_shining" (Middle East..) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Wolf-Woman (Laurel-Leaf Books) (Paperback)

It held my attention through out the book, it was so realistic and it moved me in so many ways, I think it was just so well-written and it's a real favorite..

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a wonderful story about wolves, human nature, love & sadness, September 4, 1999

By A Customer

This book is just that, with a little bit of everything. Set in a prehistoric setting in first person, the reader can really connect with every one of Tanith's (the main character) thoughts. Tanith lived with wolves as a small child before the tribe of Ahear came to kill the wolves and return her to human society, treating her as nothing more than a slave. Soon she begins to long to return to the wolves, who treated her more kindly than any human ever did. But a young man from a neighboring tribe inevitably falls in love with her and offers her a home with his less savage clan. Tanith is left to chose between the worlds of wolves and humans. It's actually something like Julie of the Wolves, but far more detailed in plot and character, and worthy of a wider range of audiences. I've read it at least ten times over since the age of nine, and I'm still not tired of it. I'd reccommend this to anyone, whether they are friends of wolves or not.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wolf Woman is a powerful novel seen through Tanith's eyes., August 19, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Wolf-Woman (Laurel-Leaf Books) (Paperback)

Wolf Woman is a powerful novel written through Tanith's eyes. In the book you feel all Tanith's feelings, her thoughts. I think that Tanith is physically human, but mentally wolf. She is calm, carefree and happy when she is with the wolves, and, although when she is with her `human friend' Gibran [whom she loves] she is happy, most of her other feelings with humans have been worry, confusion, sadness. Her clan hates the wolves, so when the two worlds clash, her feelings turn to confusion, grief, hatred. Tanith has many different emotions rolled into one, which creates one of the best and most powerful book I have ever, ever, read! I think that the book is good because it is not too unrealistic, like some fairy tales where the good characters never die, the bad guys always die, etc, etc, etc. Tanith is such a realistic book you feel like you're living in the time of Tanith, Woman of the Wolves.