The first thing one notices about this book is that ‘Wolf’
in the title is the same surname as the author-illustrator. So, of course, this
leads one to wonder what – if anything – is in connection. The story proceeds…
In the middle of a square in a ‘vast and magnificent
city’ – think Italy -- is a plinth on which is a wolf statue observing life
around it. (And is occasionally pooped on by pigeons.) ‘So, one morning,
Wolf decided to go and live with the statues in the city centre.’ The
illustration shows the animal in a yellow bus filled with children.
In the city, the wolf looks at statues in a grand
fountain and a museum. In the latter, she is shooed away by a statue being
captured by artists. Thus, Wolf goes to statues on top of a hill. He poses next
to them, but once again, he’s told to move on. Yearning for her old home, she
returns to her plinth in the town square. Finally, she is home, where she is
welcomed and truly belongs.
By the book’s end, it’s apparent that there’s no
relationship between the book title and the author-illustrator’s name.
This
warm and amusing story about learning to appreciate what you already have is by
a debut picture book artist who was shortlisted for the World Illustration
Award. It is a simple story that might be enjoyed by readers aged 5+.
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