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The Wolving Time
A family of werewolves faces the human evil of persecution in this tense and spellbinding novel from one of Scholastic Press' favorite authors.
Laszlo Emberek is caught between two the bucolic life of a shepherd, tending his family's small flock of sheep with his beloved dog, Gizi, and the secret life of his parents, who can "change" into wolves at will. 13-yr-old Laszlo knows his change will come soon. But when his family's secret is discovered by a village girl -- a ward of the evil and corrupt priest, no less -- Laszlo must decide how he wants to live. Can he trust himself to remain compassionately human as other, wilder instincts overcome him? And are humans truly less dangerous than the wolves they hate with such passion?
Laszlo Emberek is caught between two the bucolic life of a shepherd, tending his family's small flock of sheep with his beloved dog, Gizi, and the secret life of his parents, who can "change" into wolves at will. 13-yr-old Laszlo knows his change will come soon. But when his family's secret is discovered by a village girl -- a ward of the evil and corrupt priest, no less -- Laszlo must decide how he wants to live. Can he trust himself to remain compassionately human as other, wilder instincts overcome him? And are humans truly less dangerous than the wolves they hate with such passion?
208 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
April 8, 2024
I would have to agree with my first take here. There is nothing offensive about this book; it's a fine read. It just had so much opportunity to be and do more. For instance, being a werewolf is essentially a choice (only for certain predisposed people, I guess, but still). The impracticalities of a "wolving pool" being the vessel aside, I think the message would hit harder with something you cannot control, something you do not choose to be or not.
Also, while some anvils do need to be dropped, it feels as though every story ends with "the villain died, but not because I didn't try to save him" these days. Obviously that is not a bad message, but it is tiresome at this point.
My other new qualm here is where the ending leaves Muno and Laszlo's relationship. It feels - and I don't think this was the intent, hence why I'll leave this at a secretly-2.5 rating and not lower - like potential grooming and mildly incestuous, to boot. It's uncomfortable, and while not every book should make you comfortable, we are supposed to view these characters in a positive light.
First review
This one was a difficult one to rate. The writing merits the three stars, but...well, a few things bothered me. One was a personal preference: I don't like portrayals of 'werewolves' that are actually just shapeshifters with a two form limit (Animagi, as J.K. Rowling named them). However, I'm sure the religions of the day really would have called any type of person who is occasionally a wolf a werewolf, so my personal terminology preferences aside...
I'm a bit surprised Scholastic sold this. It's a rather intense read for a kid, with discussions of burning at the stake, the tortures performed in dungeons, drowning, blood spraying, nudity - and the dog dies (none too pleasantly, either). While I believe we're leaning into the extreme in censoring what children read and see these days, this book is a lot to take, especially without historical context, and most kids are not going to be learning about witch trials just yet.
I think partly because of this, I found myself constantly wondering why there even needed to be a werewolf element, why it wasn't written for an older age group, why it wasn't a thrilling, suspenseful, but realistic view of the terror of the times. It's never a good sign when you're thinking of improvements to a book whilst reading it, and there were plenty of improvements to be made, particularly concerning the God element. The book attempts a serious discussion of whether the church truly follows God's will or not, but (a) there is far too much values dissonance. Most people reading the book will not have been raised in a strictly religious environment, and probably no one reading it will have been raised to believe in burning people at the stake. So the argument, to us, falls flat, with a 'duh, that's not what God wants.' And (b) it's too scattered and punctured by the action. There's never a real break to have that discussion out, and even when attempts are made, (a) comes into play again, because Jennings knows very well the answer to that debate - it's much easier to argue something if you can legitimately see both sides. In this case, you really couldn't unless you were a product of those times.
The other thing that bothered me was Muno. Much like Pere Raoul's death, I felt a certain amount of natural sympathy for her suffering, but otherwise had no affection for the character. She's not particularly compelling; in fact, I found her annoying for 99% of the book.
Despite these complaints, it actually is quite well written, enough that I kind of enjoyed reading it in spite of myself.
Also, while some anvils do need to be dropped, it feels as though every story ends with "the villain died, but not because I didn't try to save him" these days. Obviously that is not a bad message, but it is tiresome at this point.
My other new qualm here is where the ending leaves Muno and Laszlo's relationship. It feels - and I don't think this was the intent, hence why I'll leave this at a secretly-2.5 rating and not lower - like potential grooming and mildly incestuous, to boot. It's uncomfortable, and while not every book should make you comfortable, we are supposed to view these characters in a positive light.
First review
This one was a difficult one to rate. The writing merits the three stars, but...well, a few things bothered me. One was a personal preference: I don't like portrayals of 'werewolves' that are actually just shapeshifters with a two form limit (Animagi, as J.K. Rowling named them). However, I'm sure the religions of the day really would have called any type of person who is occasionally a wolf a werewolf, so my personal terminology preferences aside...
I'm a bit surprised Scholastic sold this. It's a rather intense read for a kid, with discussions of burning at the stake, the tortures performed in dungeons, drowning, blood spraying, nudity - and the dog dies (none too pleasantly, either). While I believe we're leaning into the extreme in censoring what children read and see these days, this book is a lot to take, especially without historical context, and most kids are not going to be learning about witch trials just yet.
I think partly because of this, I found myself constantly wondering why there even needed to be a werewolf element, why it wasn't written for an older age group, why it wasn't a thrilling, suspenseful, but realistic view of the terror of the times. It's never a good sign when you're thinking of improvements to a book whilst reading it, and there were plenty of improvements to be made, particularly concerning the God element. The book attempts a serious discussion of whether the church truly follows God's will or not, but (a) there is far too much values dissonance. Most people reading the book will not have been raised in a strictly religious environment, and probably no one reading it will have been raised to believe in burning people at the stake. So the argument, to us, falls flat, with a 'duh, that's not what God wants.' And (b) it's too scattered and punctured by the action. There's never a real break to have that discussion out, and even when attempts are made, (a) comes into play again, because Jennings knows very well the answer to that debate - it's much easier to argue something if you can legitimately see both sides. In this case, you really couldn't unless you were a product of those times.
The other thing that bothered me was Muno. Much like Pere Raoul's death, I felt a certain amount of natural sympathy for her suffering, but otherwise had no affection for the character. She's not particularly compelling; in fact, I found her annoying for 99% of the book.
Despite these complaints, it actually is quite well written, enough that I kind of enjoyed reading it in spite of myself.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 31, 2017
This rating is not for the writing style or the werewolf storyline or anything like that; this rating is because this book has such strong morals and wonderful examples of how creatures should and shouldn't be towards each other.
August 15, 2011
So far I like it. It reminds me that WOLVES RULE! I love wolves! Yay, wolves!
I'd probably rather run off with a wolf pack than deal with various annoying things anyway.
This book was not so bad. It's different from my werewolf story I want to write, different from the traditional werewolf story, but it was entertaining.
It was horrible how the church kept burning people all the time over the slightest thing. And how they vilified wolves, which are really good animals.
I'd probably rather run off with a wolf pack than deal with various annoying things anyway.
This book was not so bad. It's different from my werewolf story I want to write, different from the traditional werewolf story, but it was entertaining.
It was horrible how the church kept burning people all the time over the slightest thing. And how they vilified wolves, which are really good animals.
July 4, 2018
I read this when it came out and I loved it. I was about 12 years old. It was original and captivating from what I remember. I've read thousands of books since I learned to read as a tot. This one is one of those that stood out to me, even after 14 years since I've read it. I recommend this to any young reader that likes a book with adventure and wolves.
June 11, 2018
This book didn’t really have a point, or even a plot.
May 28, 2020
This was a book I was looking forward to rereading and I was both disappointed and pleased. I enjoyed reading about the farm life, the handmade items the family sold at market and village descriptions. These were definitely the highlights of this book. The writing was fine, easy to understand. My issues with this read is its just kinda boring. Of course the human torches, the arrests, and the final run for freedom were interesting, everything in between was a bit dull. I think it was the lack of interesting characters that are at the center of this issue. Laszlo was coming up on his time to join his parents as a werewolf but there is very little of it that is actually interesting. I recall his mother saying that his emotions are heightened after changing and at no point do I ever feel that. I wish that Laszlo had felt more conflicted over becoming a werewolf. There just wasn't any tension where I felt there should have been. His parents were also pretty boring and missed the mark. Laszlo remarks multiple times about his mothers wisdom but she rarely acts like it. She bullies her husband, encourages reckless decisions and blantly disrespects a judge who is sentencing her family to death. She just comes off as immature. But at least these qualites might match her wolfish nature. Kalman is just downright a 2D character. He seems to rarely make any decisions and is the exact opposite of a family leader. He comes off as weak, easily bullied and is contradictory to every idea anyone has. The other characters aren't much better and there are some logic issues and motivation issues as well.
Overall this book isn't what it could have been.
Overall this book isn't what it could have been.
February 3, 2015
This book is a really good book, it describes a little boy Lazlo going through an change from normal human being into a werewolf. It also states that werewolves are not what we think they are, not all of them arm fierce and harmful, they are nice and friendly. For example Lazlo and his family are all werewolves, his father is always feeling anxious and sometimes i feel like Lazlo's mother is in charge of the family. Muno is a main character in the story, she is a girl by Pere Raoul's side all time. Pere Raoul is a small town's priest who chose the path to hunt down werewolves to "protect" the people in town which we know is unnecessary. Lazlo's family lives not far away from the town, sometimes they would have to go inside the town to purchase goods where they have to be extra careful not to bring their inner beast out. Muno knows the secret of his family because one time she witnessed Lazlo's mother turning into a wolf, Lazlo saw Muno inside the forest and made her promise not to spread this secret, which she did. The story later on is intense and makes me a little worried about Lazlo when he learnt the "ability" but he finds himself harder and harder to turn back. This book is a great fiction book and I wish i can find something like this for the next book
February 21, 2015
This story won't take up too much of your time. It'll challenge you a bit, and teach you a lot - I was familiar with some of the historical background Jennings used in the story, having vaguely sort of researched some of it for my own stories, so the fact that it's a period piece wasn't a deal-killer. (Not a fan of period pieces. Too many people write period pieces and decide to slather the content with their research. Takes a while to wade through the homework to get to the story. Not a problem here - this one is concise, humane, and to the point.)
So, plus one for the nice werewolves - I like nice werewolves - with no concurrent deduction for the pastoral setting. It's a sharply credible fantasy story in a recognizable setting. I forget where I picked this little guy up; it's been unread on the shelf for a while.
Also, sheep are involved.
So, plus one for the nice werewolves - I like nice werewolves - with no concurrent deduction for the pastoral setting. It's a sharply credible fantasy story in a recognizable setting. I forget where I picked this little guy up; it's been unread on the shelf for a while.
Also, sheep are involved.
January 4, 2008
A short book that takes a historical look at werewolves. Lazlo is a shepherd living with his parents in the medieval French countryside. His parents just happen to be able to change at will into wolves, and they are friends with a local pack of regular wolves. Lazlo is looking forward to the time when he'll be able to start changing too, despite the dangers of being seen as "different" in the small village--where a nasty priest regularly rounds up villagers and burns them at the stake for supposedly being witches. Lazlo's life gets complicated when a girl from the village, the priest's servant, sees his parents change--will she reveal their secret and force them to move away yet again? Very interesting book, nice adventure story and wolfy book.
January 11, 2013
I was attracted to the idea of werewolves because it's so hard to find quality ones. I found The Wolving Time to be pretty decent, though I get the feeling it was easiest to get through because it was a pretty small book. I wanted to know what would happen next, but not so much that I felt compelled to read it all in one sitting, which is possible.
The family dynamics are somewhat believable, as well as the sheltered Laszlo who is slowly being exposed to the evils around him and learning to cope with the darkness that comes from human cruelty. However, my favorite character would probably be his mother, Rita, who is the most colorful character in the book.
If you're looking for something quick, easy, and a different take on werewolves, I would say give it a shot.
The family dynamics are somewhat believable, as well as the sheltered Laszlo who is slowly being exposed to the evils around him and learning to cope with the darkness that comes from human cruelty. However, my favorite character would probably be his mother, Rita, who is the most colorful character in the book.
If you're looking for something quick, easy, and a different take on werewolves, I would say give it a shot.
June 2, 2010
A little heavy in some parts on religion...though it was also hard to determine what the author's view on religion was. Lazlo was an interesting character, but I felt that Muno wasn't as developed as she could have been. It was strange, in a book that tried so hard to have people tackling the idea of what is Good and Evil head on that the antagonist was completely evil. I would have liked to see a little good in him, too.
Overall, a very interesting and fun read. I loved the little librarian comment at the end that explained why she wrote the story!
Overall, a very interesting and fun read. I loved the little librarian comment at the end that explained why she wrote the story!
February 19, 2011
A lot of historical context @ 17thc persecutions in France of supposed witches & heretics. The fantasy aspect of the family of "loup garou" was nicely done and the whole book had a good feel for period village life, shepherd culture, the religious intolerance & repression and wolf pack (real wolves) behavior. This was one of those books I wanted to read but almost dreaded as you knew something bad was bound to transpire so you hate to go on but you do anyway. The historical violence was intense. I rated this a solid 3.5-4.
March 16, 2010
I thought The Wolving Time was a good book. The werewolf perspective was pretty cool. It also reminds me that their was a dark time when if you were on the outside you were persuacuted. The story takes place when the church was on a crusade of burning people at the stake for practicing magic. The history of religion is plauged with darkness. This book incorperated a dark part of history and some good fiction.
October 25, 2010
What a great month to read a werewolf story? I'm still not sure where the werewolf myth originates but I surely enjoyed the way this book was written. A couple of events surprised me and I wonder if they were really possible in the 1600s. Since I wasn't there, I'll let the author have free reign.
Definitely a read for a beginning werewolf reader because it isn't scary but it creates an interesting background.
Definitely a read for a beginning werewolf reader because it isn't scary but it creates an interesting background.
July 16, 2013
An interesting take on the werewolf genre. I never could figure out exactly what time (maybe late dark ages?) or place (France-ish?) this was set but I still liked it. The whole religion/the Fabric was also kinda vauge. It's like someone with a wee bit of European history knowledge cobbled it together from various cultures. I was a little icked out by mom and dad disrobing infront of kids so much. Maybe I didn't like this as much as I thought.
May 30, 2014
Interesting coming-of-age adventure about a boy and his family of werewolves. The family lives the simple life as shepherds in the countryside of France. Set in the Middle Ages, this historical fiction novel pulls a reader in quickly, and the author does an excellent job of illustrating how the pack of wolves take care of their own and a few others who come to them in need, all while the village priest burns heretics, witches, and the sort at the stake.
August 14, 2009
Laszlo is a shepherd and his parents are werewolves, a secret they have to keep hidden from the villagers and the village priest who is ever on the lookout for people to burn at the stake.
A story about right and wrong, belonging vs being an outsider, and about being who you are.
A story about right and wrong, belonging vs being an outsider, and about being who you are.
October 18, 2014
Fantastic book. I would read it again and again without ever tiring! A young adult novel that truly brings you back to medieval times, and sets you inside the minds of people at that time about outsiders and any notions of strange behavior....
December 12, 2020
This is a good and decent book. Story about a boy who begins his journey of turning as a wolf( his parents are already turn into wolves at will )...how he turns into one and the
Various things he learned...
The author has scripted the novel in a beautiful way.
The cover art is more beautiful!!
Various things he learned...
The author has scripted the novel in a beautiful way.
The cover art is more beautiful!!
October 28, 2008
I really liked this book and would recommend it. I hope that he writes a sequel to it.
January 16, 2016
j fiction strange tale of wolf people and intolerance... i liked it!
October 9, 2009
Decent read, young adult level
May 21, 2010
good, strong story.
June 1, 2013
I think the author had a small obsession with people taking off their clothes for various reasons including shape shifting and getting rained on. No really redeeming qualities
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May 22, 2014My Favourite book!!
October 16, 2014
good story..but it felt incomplete..
August 18, 2015
Notes from my childhood review:
-I love wolves so this was a good book for me
-History, animals, coming-of-age stories
-I love wolves so this was a good book for me
-History, animals, coming-of-age stories
March 7, 2016
Boy meets girl, boy turns into wolf, girl saves boy. Set in 15th century France, Jennings lays on the 'clergy is evil' a bit too thick. Still, not a bad read.
May 13, 2016
Growing up in a family of werewolves is never easy, especially when it is 16th century French Pyrenees and witch hunts are running rampant.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews