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By Kristen · 5 posts · 45 views
By Kristen · 5 posts · 45 views
last updated Sep 07, 2025 06:50PM
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2 for the writing + 4 for the illustrations which are amazing = 3 over all. I nearly abandoned after the Portland hipster preciousness of the first chapter. Seriously, apparently we needed to establish that 12 year old Prue rides a single speed bike and cruises the new used bins at the record store- very important for aesthetic. Also, it is probably a good thing the crows took the baby because eventually she was going to do some damage hauling him around in a flippin' red wagon tied to her bike
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Prue watches horrified as her little brother is carried away by crows. Her quest to get him back leads her into the Impassable Wilderness which is a world all of its own located in the heart of Portland Oregon. Nobody is supposed to be able to penetrate the borders of this strange world, however, Prue finds herself amidst its inhabitants and their longstanding conflicts.
Written by the lead singer of the Decemberists, there is also a cool soundtrack designed to accompany the book, which can be fo ...more
Written by the lead singer of the Decemberists, there is also a cool soundtrack designed to accompany the book, which can be fo ...more

Wildwood is a thrilling new fairytale that has the same charm and appeal of the classic fairytales I grew up with. This is absolutely one of my most favorite MG reads for 2011! It's a story that can be read as a family, individually or in a classroom, as there are so many elements that can be openly discussed. Wildwood is a book I highly recommend picking up. I'm eagerly awaiting to read more of this series.
You can read the rest of my 5 star review here http://mundiekids.blogspot.com/2011/0... ...more
You can read the rest of my 5 star review here http://mundiekids.blogspot.com/2011/0... ...more

This book is a long middle-grade book. I picked it up once, did not get far, and had to start it again. It has a Narnia-like feeling on the edge of present-day Portland. It had some interesting plot twists, but at times the pacing was slow and hard to get through. Overall a good story, but not a page turner for me.

Mostly, I thought it was too long, but I also thought it was too twee and derivative. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Amanda Plummer and I thought she was purposely trying to put the emphasis in weird places in sentences, which just compounded my annoyance with the book overall.
Wildwood gets two stars instead of just one because it's serviceable. If a kid really wanted a long fantasy similar to C.S. Lewis, I wouldn't tell him NOT to read this. ...more
Wildwood gets two stars instead of just one because it's serviceable. If a kid really wanted a long fantasy similar to C.S. Lewis, I wouldn't tell him NOT to read this. ...more

The pictures were extraordinary, but it felt like it was a children's book written for adults (and badly). The pacing was too slow, there was way too much unnecessary detail and what was with all these groups in the Portlandia woods with distinctly ethnic names and accents? Haven't they existed in a tiny area in the western United States for hundreds of years?
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May 12, 2011
Shannon
marked it as to-read


Jan 14, 2012
Carah
marked it as to-read

Apr 03, 2012
Margo Jantzi
added it

May 11, 2013
Ryan
marked it as to-read


Sep 26, 2019
Colleen
marked it as to-read