A novel of mothers lost and found, "Wilderness" is part roaring adventure, part family drama - with a charm that's all Roddy Doyle's. While Tom and Johnny are on a husky safari in Finland, their half-sister Grainne stays behind to face the mother who abandoned her. But Tom and Johnny are too caught up in their adventure t think of home - until they find themselves lost in the snow, in a desperate struggle for survival..
Wilderness
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
By TeensReadToo
TOP 100 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
Ten-year-old Tom Griffin and his older brother, twelve-year-old Johnny, live in Dublin, Ireland, with their parents and a teenaged half-sister, Grainne. Grainne has not seen or heard from her mother since she was a baby, and now her mother is coming from America for a visit. Grainne is nervous about the visit. Will seeing her mother heal the hurt of being abandoned by this woman?
The boys' mother, Sandra, decides to take the boys somewhere else during the visit by Grainne's mother, and arranges a holiday in Finland for herself and the boys. They are going to have a grand adventure. This story is told in alternating chapters as Tom and Johnny become acquainted with sled dogs and their handler and then go off into the wilderness on an exciting dog sled ride to a remote lodge. And as Grainne nervously waits for the arrival of her birth mother.
The boys are excited about the chance to help feed and water the sled dogs, and to help with camp chores. They are having a grand time, until their mother disappears. Her lead dog is a rogue who decides to go his own way, and she becomes lost in the cold, snowy uninhabited forest. It is dark, and the sled tips over and injures Sandra. She can't get back on the sled, or get the dogs under control.
The boys decide to take a team of dogs and sled and search for their mother on their own, and they sneak out of the lodge and harness the dogs. It's dark and cold, with deep snow, and the trail is not clear, but their lead dog seems to know where he is going...or does he?
Tween readers can relate to the realistic characters and their emotions as Roddy Doyle tells this dramatic story in sparse, simple language, while keeping the tension high. With the rowdy rambunctious boys and their adventure in Finland, the frantic search for their mother, and the angst of a teenaged girl meeting the mother who abandoned her, there is something for everyone in this exciting story.
Reviewed by: Grandma Bev
The boys' mother, Sandra, decides to take the boys somewhere else during the visit by Grainne's mother, and arranges a holiday in Finland for herself and the boys. They are going to have a grand adventure. This story is told in alternating chapters as Tom and Johnny become acquainted with sled dogs and their handler and then go off into the wilderness on an exciting dog sled ride to a remote lodge. And as Grainne nervously waits for the arrival of her birth mother.
The boys are excited about the chance to help feed and water the sled dogs, and to help with camp chores. They are having a grand time, until their mother disappears. Her lead dog is a rogue who decides to go his own way, and she becomes lost in the cold, snowy uninhabited forest. It is dark, and the sled tips over and injures Sandra. She can't get back on the sled, or get the dogs under control.
The boys decide to take a team of dogs and sled and search for their mother on their own, and they sneak out of the lodge and harness the dogs. It's dark and cold, with deep snow, and the trail is not clear, but their lead dog seems to know where he is going...or does he?
Tween readers can relate to the realistic characters and their emotions as Roddy Doyle tells this dramatic story in sparse, simple language, while keeping the tension high. With the rowdy rambunctious boys and their adventure in Finland, the frantic search for their mother, and the angst of a teenaged girl meeting the mother who abandoned her, there is something for everyone in this exciting story.
Reviewed by: Grandma Bev
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The last reviewer said that this had school reading list written all over it. Well I guess I'm about to prove his point. I'm a secondary English teacher and this was left at our school by a Heinemann rep. Seeing as I was the only one who seemed vaguely interested in this book I took it home.
Now, I'm no Roddy Doyle devotee (I've never even wanted to read any of his work before) so if you're looking for a Doyle fan's perspective, some of the other reviews might help you more.
What I can say is that when reps leave novels for us I rarely finish them and never enjoy them, but I did enjoy this - a lot.
A previous reviewer mentioned that there is little of Roddy Doyle's humour in the novel, and well, I guess he's right. There aren't any jokes. Where I disagree with the previous reviewer is his assessment of the parallel storylines. I felt that they worked brilliantly. I wanted to know about the boys. I wanted to know about their sister. I found that my interest in both story lines was maintained throughout. And the two ideas are cleverly linked.
For me it was just subtle enough, and Doyle fills this book with subtle portrayals of character delivered in precise uncomplicated prose. Most teenage fiction misses the mark for me, but I believed this. It was great.
I picked this up (having forgotten about it on Monday, by Wednesday night I'd finished it. Now I am a bit of a soppy 'eejit' I admit, but the end to this book made me cry.
School reading list, here we come! - given a fair wind and a bit of leeway in the budget at least.
Now, I'm no Roddy Doyle devotee (I've never even wanted to read any of his work before) so if you're looking for a Doyle fan's perspective, some of the other reviews might help you more.
What I can say is that when reps leave novels for us I rarely finish them and never enjoy them, but I did enjoy this - a lot.
A previous reviewer mentioned that there is little of Roddy Doyle's humour in the novel, and well, I guess he's right. There aren't any jokes. Where I disagree with the previous reviewer is his assessment of the parallel storylines. I felt that they worked brilliantly. I wanted to know about the boys. I wanted to know about their sister. I found that my interest in both story lines was maintained throughout. And the two ideas are cleverly linked.
For me it was just subtle enough, and Doyle fills this book with subtle portrayals of character delivered in precise uncomplicated prose. Most teenage fiction misses the mark for me, but I believed this. It was great.
I picked this up (having forgotten about it on Monday, by Wednesday night I'd finished it. Now I am a bit of a soppy 'eejit' I admit, but the end to this book made me cry.
School reading list, here we come! - given a fair wind and a bit of leeway in the budget at least.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
A Kid's Review
Format:Paperback
My mum bought this book for me and i didn't know whether i would like it or not but once i started it gets addictive. The story is about 2 boys and their mum who decide to go on holiday to Scandanavia. They all go on a trip but their mum doesnt return. Its up to them to save her! 10/10
One of the best!!!
One of the best!!!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent for schools
A really well thought out and useful educational tool. The contents were well set out and the Assessment section was especially useful.
Published 2 months ago by K & J Moxham Ltd Book Supplier
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wilderness by Roddy Doyle
I enjoyed the book and thought it was very adventurous.
I would recommend the book for 9+ because it gets quite worrying in places
I would recommend the book for 9+ because it gets quite worrying in places
Published 6 months ago by By ......
5.0 out of 5 stars
A gripping adventure story
This book is a wonderful adventure story about two boys, Tom and Johnny, who go to Lapland with their mother on holiday and get caught up in a race to find her when her dog sled... Read more
Published 14 months ago by Mrs. K. A. Wheatley
5.0 out of 5 stars
a thrilling story
Wilderness is a great story with a fantastic story line.The book is about two boys and their mother who go to Finland on holiday,while their half sister stays behind to meet her... Read more
Published 21 months ago by ad31
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good book, dog-lover read!!!!
First, I should tell you something about me. Well, I am a complete dog-freak. Anything dog I will read, watch or do. I have a dog-a rescue dog who is a Labrador cross. Read more
Published on 5 Feb 2011
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not the Roddy Doyle that I knew
First of all let me start with saying that for me Roddy Doyle is a genius.
I loved his early books: The commitments,The snapper,The van. Read more
I loved his early books: The commitments,The snapper,The van. Read more
Published on 4 Dec 2010 by Lo in Londinium
5.0 out of 5 stars
A bit different and rather good
I found this a welcome change from the over-abundance of fantasy type books for children. If you're not a huge fantasy fan then there's not a lot to choose on the bookshelves. Read more
Published on 16 April 2010 by C. Carter
4.0 out of 5 stars
wilderness
have not read the book yet but on frst impression it looks fascinating for teenagers.
Published on 21 Mar 2010 by A. Low
2.0 out of 5 stars
Great Writers Talent Lost in the Wilderness.
Roddy Doyle is one of my favourite authors, after being thrilled by the Barrytown Trilogy I've followed his writing through Paddy Clarke, Paula Spencer and the Last Roundup books. Read more
Published on 1 Feb 2008 by Ian Wood, Author of 'Here's 2 Absent Fathers'
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