Wolf Pack

Deborah Dowson is a Canadian children’s librarian living in Powell,
Ohio.

Fifteen years ago Brock Garrett rescued four wolf cubs from a forest
fire. When he brought the cubs home, his wife discovered that they were
not ordinary wolf cubs but lycanthropes—wolves that are able to
transform into humans and to a form of werewolf in between. Brock and
his wife decided to keep this a secret and raised the cubs as humans.

Years later, when the now-teenaged wolves are transitioning into human
form, a documentary reporter captures the shift on film. The
“scientist” soon traps one of the wolves with the intention of
exploiting her for his own fame and fortune. Although the siblings try
to let the humans sort it out, it soon becomes apparent that they have
to take the matter of their sister’s rescue and the protection of
their secret into their own hands.

Though the story is a fantasy, it is also a typical teenage adventure
about kids who find themselves in situations where they are challenged
by authority and learn to make decisions and take charge for themselves.
The special nature of these teenagers only exaggerates the difficulties
they have in finding themselves and their place in the world.

The book also invites consideration about the ethical treatment of
animals captured in the wild. The characters are a little
one-dimensional and stereotypical, but the story has a good plot that is
not at all as menacing as the cover illustration depicts. Recommended.