The “Wolf and the Warlander”: Top 35!!

RIDE THE WIND: Chip Davis and Mark Valenti, Illus. by James Taylor

A bonded wild horse and a wolf have gone their separate ways, but their adventurous lives continue to intersect in Book 2 of a trilogy for middle schoolers.

In The Forever Time (2018), the compelling introduction to The Wolf & The Warlander trilogy with story by Mannheim Steamroller founder Davis, written by veteran author/screenwriter Valenti (Last Night at the Monarch Motel, 2013, etc.), wolf cub Seti was rescued by Ghost, a wild Warlander colt. They grew up together in the peaceful valley where Ghost lived with his wise father, Pegasus, and gracious mother, Lady, until they were forced by the realities of their natures to pursue their own destinies. The moving and mystical quality of their bond, however, ensured that their paths would cross again. In Book 2, Seti and Ghost have reached young adulthood, and the stakes are higher for them both. A lightning-fueled forest fire, a vicious rival, and an encounter with a mountain lion threaten the survival of Seti’s own family and pack. Loss and injury are on the horizon for Ghost, who, after taking on his aging father’s responsibilities and courting a potential mate, suffers near-crippling abuse by cruel human captors. Taut with suspense and resonant with authentic emotion (keep tissues nearby), the writing never flags, drawing readers into a fully conceived world of untamed forest, lake, and valley where Ghost’s and Seti’s separate journeys will culminate in a truly breathtaking reunion. Messages about problem-solving, facing fears, and coping with grief are seamlessly woven throughout the plot, and family is an anchoring theme, observed from the points of view of parent, child, and mate. (Seti protects and teaches his son; Ghost absorbs his parents’ wisdom and understanding.) Indeed, the animal protagonists are anthropomorphized so realistically that the humans in the plot barely register as such. Illustrator Taylor’s striking charcoal-gray drawings of animals and nature occur throughout. (As in the first book, a glossary of words related to this story is included.)

A fast-moving novel alive with danger, suspense, vivid characters, and an unexpected, abiding interspecies friendship.