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From Amazon
Up to this point, McKean's illustrations are spectacular, sinister collages awash in golden sepia tones evocative of the creepy beauty in The City of Lost Children. The wolves explode into the story in scratchy pen-and-ink, all jaws and eyes. The family flees to the cold, moonlit garden, where they ponder their future. Her brother suggests they escape to outer space where there's "nothing but foozles and squossucks for billions of miles". Lucy wants to live in her own house...and she wants the pig-puppet she left behind.
Eventually she talks her family into moving back into the once-wolfish walls, where they peek out at the wolves who are watching their television and spilling popcorn on slices of toast and jam, dashing up the stairs and wearing their clothes. When the family can't stand it anymore, they burst forth from the walls, scaring the wolves, who shout "And when the people come out of the walls, it's all over!" The wolves flee and everything goes back to normal...until the tidy ending when Lucy hears "a noise that sounded exactly like an elephant trying not to sneeze". Adult fans of this talented pair will revel in the quirky story and its darkly gorgeous, deliciously shadowy trappings, but the young or faint of heart, beware. The book is recommended for ages nine and above. --Karin Snelson, Amazon.com --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From School Library Journal
Marian Creamer, Children's Literature Alive, Portland, OR
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Inside the house everything was quiet. Read the first page
Concordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic!,
By
This review is from: The Wolves In The Walls (Hardcover)
I discovered Neil Gaiman in the airport bookstore on a recent business trip. I became a convert after reading the first few pages of "American Gods". What a delight it was to find that my newest, favoritest author also writes children's books. ...Parents beware, this book is scarier for adults than it is for kids. Adults remember the things that scared them at night, in a distorted sort of way. Creatures living in the walls seems to be one of those things that might have given us nightmares when we were kids. However, for me, the scariest part wasn't the wolves themselves, but the unsettling notion that there was so much space behind the walls. What other things might live in the invisible spaces of our homes? <Shiver....> Despite my own perspective of the story, my ... son admires Lucy's courage. You see, you cannot tell a story about overcoming your fears without the idea of "fear" itself. WitW delivers just enough fear to compel the reader. The ending is light-hearted and fun, so make sure your children read the book to its completion. The illustrations are top-notch and really compliment the mood of the story well. They are a little unsettling, to be sure, but I also remember how I loved the terrifying illustrations in "Where the Wild Thigs Are" as a child. Creepy, funny, and heroic, WitW is destined to become a classic picture book. ...
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gaiman and McKean spin another exciting tale,
By
This review is from: The Wolves In The Walls (Hardcover)
Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite authors. Often working in the realms of science fiction and fantasy in his writing for "adults," Gaiman has successfully carried his creativity, masterful storytelling, respect for his audience, and of course, his charming British wit, into his children's stories. Following "The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish," and "Coraline," Gaiman brings children and adults alike an adventurous tale in "The Wolves in the Walls." Our heroine, Lucy, is convinced that wolves live in the walls of her house. Her mum, dad, and brother brush off her assertions, until the wolves finally come out. Driven from the house, Lucy takes it upon herself to solve her family's dilemma. The best thing about Neil Gaiman as a children's author is his clear respect for kids. He knows kids aren't stupid, and his stories make children the heroes, using their unique point of view to conquer their own fears and rescue their loved ones. Lucy in "Wolves" is no exception: she's definitely a kid - she consults with her pig puppet frequently - but she's not helpless - she saves the day in the end. Gaiman's longtime collaborator, Dave McKean, makes this story truly special. His unique artistic notions have made him famous in the comic book world (especially for his cover art for Gaiman's "Sandman" series) and his work in "Wolves," covering a wide range of styles, makes this story visually exciting. The vivid story and art might scare the youngest of children, but nobody is put in real danger, and most children (and adults, too!) will find this exciting tale a pleasure to read aloud.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Light and refreshing!,
By
This review is from: The Wolves In The Walls (Paperback)
***CONTAINS SPOILERS!!***Similar to The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish, The Wolves in the Walls is another picture book written for children. Having been so used to reading adult fiction by Neil Gaiman ' books such as Stardust and Smoke and Mirrors ' I was so amazed, when I started to read his children's books, at how amazing they were. These last few books, especially, have a been great reads because they are enhanced with the brilliance of Dean McKean's illustrations. Unlike TDISMDFTG, The Wolves in the Walls is a little more haunting ' Lucy is certain she hears wolves in the walls, and when the wolves come out of the walls, it's all over (because 'they' say so). Though while there's a certain creepiness to it, the book is also quite funny ' again, the sibling banter that can be found in my last Neil Gaiman review. While I was on pins and needles wondering what would happen once the wolves came out, I thought it was so funny what the wolves did once they got in the house ' ate jam on toast, threw parties, played the tuba. And then the ending ' just priceless! The novel reads similar to a Dr. Seuss book, with all of it's rhyming words here and there, but it's all Neil Gaiman. Definitely not something you would expect out of a children's book. Now, whether this book is a good read for young children is debatable ' it's similar to Coraline, in that creepy and disturbing kind of way. It might be wise to ease children into Gaiman's world via The Graveyard Book, instead of The Wolves in the Walls, as it's just a little less creepy. It was a very refreshing read!
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