Shadow Wolf (Wolves of the Beyond Series #2)

by Kathryn Lasky

Overview

The second installment in bestselling author Kathryn Lasky's staggering WOLVES OF THE BEYOND series, a spinoff of the legendary Guardians of Ga'Hoole books.The wolf pup Faolan was born with a twisted paw, a slight defect that caused his wolf clan to abandon him in the forest to die. But Faolan, with the help of the grizzly bear who raised him as her own, survived.Now he's made it back to his clan as a gnaw wolf, the lowest ranking pack member. And the hardships are just beginning. Another gnaw wolf, Heep, is jealous of Faolan and sets him up for failure. As if these humiliations are not enough, Faolon is framed for the murder of a wolf pup. Faolan must catch the culprit in time and prove he deserves to be a full member of the clan.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545328883
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	10/01/2010
Series:	Wolves of the Beyond Series , #2
Sold by:	Scholastic, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	272
Lexile:	870L (what's this?)
File size:	930 KB
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Kathryn Lasky is the Newbery Honor-winning author of over 100 books for children and young adults. Her beloved Guardians of Ga'Hoole fantasy series has more than seven million copies in print, and she is the author of the Daughters of the Sea series and the Wolves of the Beyond series, as well as A Time for Courage and other Dear America titles. Kathryn has also written a number of critically acclaimed historical fiction titles, such as Beyond the Burning Time and True North. She lives with her husband in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Read an Excerpt

From Wolves of the Beyond #2: Shadow Wolf

Faolan was concentrating as hard as he ever had. At last he was in the byrrgis. The hard earth flew beneath him. He was barely aware of his paws striking the ground except for a tingle that traveled up through his femurs. But he felt a surge of vibrations from hundreds of paws pounding the earth. Signals flew back and forth, except now there was a nick in the pristine silence.

Urskadamus! That cursed gnaw wolf Heep was clicking his teeth as if he were gnawing a bone, making Faolan miss the signals. He is doing this on purpose! Faolan stumbled again.

Heep moved closer and, with eyes full of treachery, opened his mouth wide to slash his teeth together. The sounds scratched into Faolan's brain like splinters. Edme looked at him in dismay. The first signal had been given for the kill rush, and Faolan had missed his cue. He sprang off his hind legs but was too late, stumbling again and sprawling flat. Faolan, the wolf who had risen on his hind legs like a grizzly to confront a bull moose, lay sprawled on the ground.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for the first book in the Wolves of the Beyond series:"This is a soulful, searching read consumed with the spiritual journeys of animals and the ethereal connection between slayer and slain. [W]ith an invigorating ending that bodes well for the next volume." - Booklist"The author builds a captivating world of forest, snow and volcanoes populated by intelligent animals and weaves a compelling story sure to bring readers back for the second installment." - Kirkus

From the Publisher

Gr 4–6—Fans of the "Guardians of Ga'Hoole" series (Scholastic) and those who ate up Lone Wolf (Scholastic, 2009), the first book in this series, will be eager to learn the fate of mother grizzly bear Thunderheart's beloved adopted-wolf-son, Faolan, who was born with a deformed paw and left to die until she found him. In this tightly plotted, lyrical tale, Faolan endures his lot as a gnaw wolf, but has no idea how to bend his innate bravery and confidence into the accepted fringe behavior, cowering and cringing while mashing his face in the dirt to show the required obeisance. Lasky blends her powerful skill in establishing a setting with Faolan's lilting poetry and song, revealing his tender heart and the forest's own beauty. She builds the wolf society as if it were a human tribe of both wise and blind leaders, living in a culture of cruelty, survival, evil, and honor. It is the magic of tribal strength and love that lays down the only hope for a talented young wolf. Readers will be delighted that heroes from Lasky's "Ga'Hoole" series appear to challenge the established world in this fascinating addition to the "Wolves" series.—Nancy Call, Santa Cruz Public Libraries, Aptos, CA

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