The Wolf Who Ate the Sky

by Mary Daniel Hobson, Anna Isabel Rauh, Charles Hobson (Illustrator)

Once upon a time there was a wolf who was so hungry that when he went to bed he said, “When I wake up, I am going to eat the first thing I see.” The next morning when he opened his eyes the first thing he saw was the sky, and guess what happened next…

After the world goes dark, a brave boy, along with a menagerie of other animals, decides to confront the wolf who ate the sky. This utterly charming and mythic tale was created by Mary Daniel Hobson and her young daughter Anna. Accompanying the text are dreamy, evocative illustrations created by Anna’s grandfather Charles Hobson.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

First published April 10, 2015

Reviews

[Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three generations of a family created “The Wolf Who Ate the Sky”, and what a wonderful creation it is! The story is engaging and the illustrations are absolutely amazing. Little ones will be asking to read it again and again, and those of all ages will enjoy the beauty. Highly recommended!

This review is based upon a copy won through the Goodreads First Reads program.

[Antoinette Hollamon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was suggested in a reading list tied to learning about the moon phases. But there is no moon in this book. 😐 The story was that a wolf plans to eat the first thing he sees when he wakes up and the first thing he sees is the sky. Everyone is now in darkness but a little boy decides to fix it. He, along with some animals, find the wolf and retrieve the sky. That’s it. It just sort of ends. There is some teamwork between all the animals and the illustrations are different enough from traditional animation to be interesting. But all and all, I wasn’t to impressed.

[Gayle Cappelluti · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was fortunate enough to win this adorable children's book in a Goodreads giveaway and I thoroughly enjoyed it. However, my seven-year-old granddaughter, was not as enamored with it, and truth be told, I suspect she is the audience the authors would prefer to win over. I thought the illustrations were beautiful, creative multi-media works of art, ; she called them "kind of creepy...they look like colored pencils and chalk and that's all" I thought the story line was sweet; she found it too predictable, (my words, not hers. What she said was, "I bet the animals are gonna....." I won't ruin the story for you, but let it suffice to say, that mid-way through the tale, she guessed how it would play out. Is this a bad thing, though? I think not. You judge for yourself.
In this tale of helpfulness and responsibility, we find a hungry wolf who promises himself that upon waking in the morning he would eat the very first thing he saw. We know by the title what that was! Unfortunately, the rest of us here need the sky, and thanks to the resourcefulness of one little boy and his animal help mates, you and I have been spared a life of skylessness, (okay, so maybe I made that word up!).
I really liked this story. Perhaps it is geared toward an audience a bit younger than my first grade grand-daughter. Or maybe it just doesn't do it for her. Whatever the case, I definitely think you should check it out.
I re-read this story several years later to my 3-year-old grandson. As I suspected in my previous review, this story was greatly appreciated by its younger listener. He loved it. Over and over we read. Again and again he exclaimed to one family member after another,"You gotta hear this!!" The Wolf Who Ate the Sky is a perfect story for young listeners.

[Rita · Rating 4 out of 5]

**I received this book from the publisher via Goodreads giveaways**

I absolutely love the writing style. It's done poetically with a magical quality albeit a bit too short and simplistic for my taste. The plot was a bit lackluster and predictable in that it reminded me of so many other children's books that are out there. But there is no doubt in my mind that if you read this to a child, they would love it all the same.

Another thing that bothered me a bit was the illustrations and the typography used. I understand that aesthetically, the art style is trying to portray the image of sketches and handwritten text on paper. However, I feel that to really polish that look, the sketches could have been lined a bit better and the font could have been better chosen. It did mar my experience reading the book somewhat but it was still enjoyable nonetheless.

[Kelly Knapp · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the type of story that is perfect for use with an emerging or reluctant reader, as it lends itself to asking questions like, "what would it mean for the world, if the sky was swallowed?" Just before turning a page and letting the reader see if that was the author's plan...

I read this with a five year old, city dweller, who asked why the street lights didn't go on. Out of the mouths of babes and off we were to discuss the forest. LOL

[Sara Hartford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to win this children's book. I read this to two preschool classes and they loved it. They thought it was silly how the wolf swallowed the sky and they enjoyed how every creature worked together. My 2nd grade son even enjoyed this book. The illustrations were awesome. The pencil sketch appearance brought the book to another level.

[Mills College Library]

Picture H6847w 2015

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a delightful story! Very sweet, and the art is gorgeous.