Bulwark

Bulwark by Brit Lunden   146 pages

 Something strange is happening in the small Georgia town of Bulwark.  First the sheriff’s daughter is kidnapped. No ransom note.  No trace whatsoever.  Then, residents are reported wolf sightings, but wolves have not been seen in that ara in decades. Third, an “older” couple’s (the author says in their sixties---give me a break) car lands in the middle of a murky green pond/lake/puddle (the author can’t make up her mind) that wasn’t there before the accident.

As Sheriff Clay Finnes begins to investigate, even stranger things begin to happen. The couple was coming from the opposite direction, but the road is closed. The only thing back there is an abandoned paper mill. How could they come from that direction? 

Clay has bigger problems than weird events. An plucky reporter who senses a story thwarts him at every turn.  Given that that same reporter is the reason Clay’s marriage broke up, he’s doubly irritated at what is going on.

Clay has no choice but to find the mysterious road the earlier victims mentioned in their statements. Clay has lived there most of his life and has never heard of Linden Lane.  But that night he manages to find it, along with a dilapidated gingerbread house and a very old woman who lives there.

The story moved along at a quick pace, even though it wasn’t scary or anything new. It irritated me that the author gave two endings. Make up your mind.  But one thing did impress me: This book is a series and each of other seven or eight books are written by a different author using other characters from Bulwark, Georgia.

 “Bulwark” receives 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Red

Redby Liesl Shurtliff, 243 pages

"Followed by a wolf, a huntsman, and a porridge-sampling nuisance called Goldie, Red embarks on a quest to find a magical cure for her ailing grandmother."  I really enjoy retold fairy tales and this book was no exception.  Red’s character was fascinating and hearing the snippets of other people’s tales throughout the main story was also a lot of fun.  This is the third installment in this collection and I hope there will be more.  Any child who likes fairy tale retellings will want to check out these books.

American Wolf: A True Story of Survival and Obsession in the West

American Wolf: A True Story of Survival and Obsession in the West by Nate Blakeslee     320 pages

Before men ruled the earth, there were wolves. Once abundant in North America, these majestic creatures were hunted to near extinction in the lower 48 states by the 1920s. But in recent decades, conservationists have brought wolves back to the Rockies, igniting a battle over the very soul of the West.

With novelistic detail, Nate Blakeslee tells the gripping story of one of these wolves, O-Six, a charismatic alpha female named for the year of her birth. Uncommonly powerful, with gray fur and faint black ovals around each eye, O-Six is a kind and merciful leader, a fiercely intelligent fighter, and a doting mother. She is beloved by wolf watchers, particularly renowned naturalist Rick McIntyre, and becomes something of a social media star, with followers around the world.

But as she raises her pups and protects her pack, O-Six is challenged on all fronts: by hunters, who compete with wolves for the elk they both prize; by cattle ranchers who are losing livestock and have the ear of politicians; and by other Yellowstone wolves who are vying for control of the park's stunningly beautiful Lamar Valley.

An exceptional read. I was fascinated by the story that's been unfolding for most of my life without knowing that it's happening. The reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone was such a necessary step, and yet the fight to protect these same wolves should they leave the park's boundaries is a seemingly never-ending battle. There are those who wish to protect their livestock, there are those who simply hate wolves, and there are those who like to trophy hunt - and this mixture of types led to a politicizing of a seemingly non-complicated decision to allow an animal to return to the lands it was driven from by humans (through poisoning, over killing, etc.). It just goes to show that where man has taken hold of the wilderness, nature has to fight to prove it's worth to be there - and only through the fight that other humans provide. Where would the wolves of Yellowstone be without the voices of those wolf-watchers, biologists, and environmentalists?

It was hard reading this book because there were so many instances of death - many at the hands of humans. But nature is brutal and sometimes cruel and wolves are no exception. Yet Blakeslee manages to capture their lovable side, their playfulness, and their majesty. It seems impossible to me that humans can look at these magnificent creatures and see only a brutish animal that needs to be killed. I dislike, very much, big game hunting, especially when there is so much to prove that it is bad for the environment, bad for the ecosystem of these national parks and beyond. I loved how in-depth this book went to show how these wolves contributed to a regrowth of balance in the environment of Yellowstone, and many times in unsuspected ways.

I wish there was an insert with images of these wolves. I would have loved to look at them as I read about them, but Blakeslee, with the help of notes from the many wolf-watchers who contributed their information to this book, does an excellent job of describing the wolves, their different natures, their lives. It was such a great read. I honestly would recommend this to anyone. It's worth seeing a slice of life outside of urban settings, especially in a place that is almost exactly the same as it's been since before people began populating North America. 

Sinner

Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater        357 pages

Cole is in L.A., making a comeback.  Although half of is band is dead, he believes he could start a new band and still be a big start so he is going on a reality internet show, known for its ability to leave rock stars in tatters at the end.  Cole expects to stay above that because he plans to stay to clean.  At least, this is the story that the public is hearing.  Cole’s real reason for being in L.A. is that Isabel is there and he is determined to win her back.  But even though Cole is off of the drugs he still has the wolf to deal with and he’s more than willing to use the wolf to deal (or not deal) with his feelings and problems.  Until he can learn to deal with life on his own, he may never have a shot with Isabel.  A good follow-up to the Shiver trilogy, fans of the series will love this book.  Teens who haven’t read the series may be confused about what’s happening with Cole so I’m not sure if starting with this book would work well, but the rest of the story is good enough that people would probably be figure out enough that it wouldn’t be distracting.