Wild by Ele Fountain

Publishing: May 2023

Wild is the kind of story that stays with you. I found myself thinking about it in between reading sessions, wondering what was going to happen next in this fast-paced rainforest adventure. I was worried about the deeply troubled character of Jack and his relationship with his mum.

When his father dies, Jack struggles to cope. He’s worried he will forget his dad and life will never be the same again. Influenced by a new group of friends who ask him to do things he knows he shouldn’t and feeling ignored while Mum is busy with her work as a environmental anthrolpologist, he spirals into a situation he can’t control.

Finally, Mum becomes concerned and takes Jack with her on a work trip to the rainforest. What he expects to be a boring few weeks waiting for Mum while she’s at the office turns into a heart-pounding journey into the dangerous unknown. It seems Mum has a whole other life – friends who are like family and a unquenchable passion for protecting the rainforest and its indigenous people from loggers who threaten everything about life as they know it.

As they travel into the remote rainforest, Jack and his mum learn just how courageous they can be and how much their little family means to them.

Jack’s story is told with a strength of voice that drills into readers. His despair runs across the page as he struggles to listen to his conscience. He is trapped in a grief and loss that no one understands. His love of street art might be the only thing that can bring him through this horrible time, but even that gets him in trouble. Readers will journey with Jack as he tries to find some purpose and a new identity now that his family has gotten smaller. When there’s a risk of losing Mum too, he has to dig deeper than he ever thought possible to find out who he is on his own and decide what is really important to him.

Ele Fountain has a unique talent for bringing international settings to life. I feel like I’m right there with Jack, his mum and her friends as they travel through the rainforest full of melting heat, insects, poisonous creatures and dangerous loggers who will shoot first and ask questions later. The issue of rainforest conservation is presented with clarity and intensity. There is no time to wait if we are going to save this precious natural resource or the people who make their home there.

I was so excited when Wild came through my door. Like Ele Fountain’s other books, it is a gripping adventure fuelled by important contemporary issues. It is pitched perfectly for readers who are coming towards the end of their middle grade journey and ready to transition into more mature themes. My own children, ages 12, 12 & 14, are huge fans of Ele Fountain as her books challenge them to think about the world in a new way and care about issues that need to be addressed. No sooner had I finished Wild than my son put it in his school bag for his next read.

Thank you to Pushkin Children’s for an early copy of this incredible book!

You can read my reviews of some of Ele Fountain’s other books here: