The Year the Wolves Came

by Bebe Faas Rice

In this fast-paced, turn-of-the-century thriller, a young homestead girl's fairy-tale family turns upside down when a mysterious pack of wolves appears, eliciting very peculiar--and terrifying--behavior from Mama.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

148 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1994

Reviews

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s exactly how I remember it from all the times I read it in school. The nostalgia I felt rereading this for the first time since 2011 hit hard. I will forever love this book and I’m so thrilled to own a copy of it after all this time

[Brittany Coyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my all time favorite book as a kid. I recently found it on amazon & I can't wait to share it with my future kids :)

[Kayleigh Paxton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first book to ever make me cry. I think I was in 3rd grade. It took me years to track down this book because I could only vaguely remember the plot leading up to the ending and what the cover looked like. Some kind soul on reddit helped me figure it out, and I promptly purchased a second hand copy online. But then it’s sat on my shelves for at least a year, regularly pulled off and looked at, but never opened. When I know something has made me sad before, or suspect it will make me cry, I tend to avoid it like the plague. Even though I know the ending, even though it’s been 20 years and logic tells me I won’t be quite affected as much.

Two days ago my dog, my sweet boy that I got just four months into living on my own, passed away unexpectedly. He had cancer in his liver and spleen that we didn’t know about. He was only 6 and a half. He always listened to me so attentively and I remember telling him everything I could remember about the book when my copy first arrived at the house. I have cried so much the last 45 hours, but there’s still more in me to come. I thought now would be a good time to finally reread this book so I can cry about something other than my sweet Kel. It worked. And the book held up to my childhood memories which is a rare and special thing. Pinky’s prayer did get me. “Go forth, O unhappy spirit, from this troubled body and imperfect world into the paradise that has been prepared for you by the Almighty Father…” The important detail is that Mama was not unhappy, she loved deeply and was just as loved. And so is Kel.

I’ve never read another story by Bebe Faas Rice, and it’s my understanding she writes scary stories for children. While this one might be haunting, I find it more moving than anything else.

[America · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember picking this book out I think when I was in 2nd grade and we had to do those daily reading logs haha. I'm a sophomore in college now and this book still has my heart.
It was one of the first books I went out of my way as a kid to reread, the story was otherworldly to me and beautiful. Now, I would reread it again considering I don't remember all the details of the plot and characters, I mostly just remember how this book made me feel years ago.

[Denise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Liked the whole book except for killing the wolf and then forgiving the killer? That’s messed up.

[laurenpie · Rating 5 out of 5]

a beautifully story

Though the story is harsh, it is yet poignant and beautiful, emotional and intense.. in the vein of a classic-horror fairytale happening in real life. The setting is a homestead on the Canadian prairie in 1906. One aspect that made me love this book even more was Therese and Joey's love and trust and care of not only each other, but toward their troubled mother and father as well.

Seems aimed younger than YA, I'd recommend about 9 years and up. There's no sex or foul language, but the plot could be upsetting to some. There's also no magic and no haunting, spirits or ghosts. I was disappointed to see that the author's other works all seem to be in a different vein, not anything I'd be interested in by the plot blurbs.

[Audrey McCormick 6 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had never read this book, and saw it on our bookshelf without a dust jacket so decided to read it. I was expecting it to be kinda Julie of the Wolves meets Little House on the Prairie. Ha! My daughter saw me reading it and said, “Oh, I read that, it’s really good. You’ll like it.” I did enjoy it, but it wasn’t my typical kinda story at all. As soon as Pinky shared the legend, I knew where the book was going.

[Marjorie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book of my childhood! I read it when I was probably 10 years old when I lived in France and played a huge part in my life. I'm now 31 years old, established myself in Canada and visited the wolves many times.

[Xtina · Rating 5 out of 5]

stories like this are why we all wanted to write books when we were growing up.

[Haley Vandal · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is probably one of my favorite books. Bebe Faas Rice does an amazing job on keeping the book really content, but at the same time really emotional. This book really keeps you on your toes waiting to see what happenes next! Im really into vampires, wearwolves, ghosts etc. So if you are also into those types of fantasy/science fiction this book would be a great choice for you! I deffinitely reccomed this book, because it makes you think about whats going to happen next, and who is going to find out what, and whats going to happen to him or her. I rated this book a three because sometimes in the chapters the charecters move on to diffrent subjects to quickly, and i didnt really like that because you cant really absorb the information. But other than that, this was a great book and i would deffinitely read it again!

[Alicia · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book has bothered me ever since I read it as a six year old. Don't be fooled by the cute picture on the cover - the wolves are portrayed as vicious monsters, and the girl's mother, who is a werewolf, is shot to death at the end. Worse, she says something to the extent of, "I'm glad I was killed so I never had a chance to hurt you." What a terrible message for kids! As a kid, what I took away from this was that it would be better for a "bad mother," like a woman suffering from drug addiction or who was in the criminal justice system, to just die than to receive help and support from the community.

That aside, haven't wolves been vilified enough? And wolves are some of the most dedicated animal parents out there - why make the werewolf mother be some irredeemable beast deserving of death? Twenty years later, I still cannot stand this book.

[Tracee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of my favorite books when I was in elementary. From a young age I've liked books dealing with different things, like werewolves, vampires, ghosts, etc. This book was so well done for the age it's meant for. I wasn't terrified after the book, I was just content. I read it more than once, and could read it again.

[Anushka09 · Rating 5 out of 5]

WHEN I READ THIS BOOK, IT WAS EMOTIONAL BUT
INTERESTING.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book since 4th grade.

[Safd Fda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book scared me to death in 4th grade!!! I randomly saw this at the library and decieded to check it out... luckily! ;)

[Fernanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember I read the book in 3rd or 4th grade and absolutely loved it. I really wanted to buy and found it on amazon. It brought memories. It's such a great book.

[Caitlin Magness · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book rocked my world when I was in fifth grade. I'd love to read it again. Hoping I can find a copy someday.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book. Sad Wonderful and adventures

[Desteny Mijares · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book because it surprises you at the end of the book and it is very interesting.