The very best way to describe Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk is that it is a book about coming of age.  A book about when life is no longer simple and a child first becomes aware of hard truths, complicated people, and a world that is no longer what it seemed.  This is not a comfortable book.  It is a book to make you think, to make you examine your own life, and to wonder what you would do in the situations that the young Annabelle encounters.  Wolk’s prose is vivid and real, leaving the reader somewhat uncomfortable at times as hard questions surface and the realities of a harsh world are evident. Her message is poignant and sad, yet somehow leaves you with hope for the good people in the world around you and a renewed resolve to be one of them.

This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by Dutton Children’s

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language:  None

Violence/Gore:  Various instances of bullying; verbal threats; a character beats another with a stick; a character maliciously kills a small animal as a threat; a character is hit in the eye with a rock, goes into convulsions and ultimately loses the eye; a character is injured by a wire strung across a path; a character tells of violent war experiences; a character is impaled in the shoulder; a child dies; a character dies.

Sex/Nudity:  None

Mature Subject Matter:

War and PTSD, violent and disturbing bullying, death, aspects of suicide.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

None