Gone Wolf

by Amber McBride

Award-winning author Amber McBride lays bare the fears of being young and Black in America, in this middle-grade novel that has been compared to the work of Jordan Peele and praised as " brilliantly inventive storytelling" by Publishers Weekly.
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In the future, a Black girl known only as Inmate Eleven is kept confined -- to be used as a biological match for the president's son, should he fall ill. She is called a Blue -- the color of sadness. She lives in a small-small room with her dog, who is going wolf more often – he’s pacing and imagining he’s free. Inmate Eleven wants to go wolf too―she wants to know why she feels so Blue and what is beyond her small-small room.

In the present, Imogen lives outside of Washington DC. The pandemic has distanced her from everyone but her mother and her therapist. Imogen has intense phobias and nightmares of confinement. Her two older brothers used to help her, but now she’s on her own, until a college student helps her see the difference between being Blue and sad, and Black and empowered.

In this symphony of a novel, award-winning author Amber McBride lays bare the fears of being young and Black in America, and empowers readers to remember their voices and stories are important, especially when they feel the need to go wolf.

Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Dystopia, Fiction, Young Adult, Science Fiction, Audiobook

352 pages, Hardcover

First published October 3, 2023

Reviews

[Mai H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black History Month

After consuming far too many YA dystopian novels during The Hunger Games era, I had to drop the genre after far too many of them were mediocre, e.g. Divergent. With the world the way it is currently, I'm not too sad they've made quite the resurgence.

I always seem to have an easier time relating to MG novels rather than YA. I tend to judge their youth slightly less. I wonder why that is. Inmate Eleven, a young Black girl, is kept confined. She is called a Blue, the color of sadness. Her one companion is a dog that acts more like a wolf.

There are clones in this world. They are in power. Of course, not everything is truthful. Beneath this veneer of lies, the truth begins to unravel. What is real? What is perceived? What is true?

Side note: Not that this is in any way a werewolf or wolf shifter book, but I realized I dislike the genre because I'm not a dog person. This was somehow news to me. Anyway.

🎧 Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Young Listeners

[Lee (Books With Lee) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amber McBride has officially become one of my favorite authors. Love this book (full review to come)

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Gone Wolf” is a beautifully written, powerful story about race, diversity, equality, oppression, and coping with loss. Two girls, Inmate Eleven and Imogen, one living in the future and the other the present tell their story of feeling trapped, sad, and “going wolf” aka being free.

McBride’s prose in this middle grade novel is effortlessly emotive. The two girls’ stories are intricately woven together creating tension throughout the entire book. McBride masterfully threads elements of Black history, American history, and current events seamlessly into this impactful story.

Fans of “Me (Moth)” and stories in the same vein of “Dear Martin” and “The Cost of Knowing” will resonate and love “Gone Wolf”.

[Toya (thereadingchemist) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jesus. This is by far my favorite book by McBride, but it hurts so much.

More to come.

[Traci Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is a very sweet book for young folks. I liked the idea of it but think the execution in two parts left me wanting more of a wrap up from the first part and less overall from the second.

[Jenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

✨5 stars✨

❤️



I don't read anything middle grade. The youngest I normally go is YA but it’s by Amber McBride so I gotta get reading and give it a chance even thou I’m way over middle grade.

[Dest · Rating 3 out of 5]

First off, a warning for my friends who can't read a book where a dog is injured or killed: You do not want to read this book.

This had a similar twist as The Probability of Everything. You think you know what the book is about (dystopia; world ending) but then it ends up being about real life. It's really the story of a child using imagination to cope with trauma.

Ok, so. I did not enjoy Gone Wolf. It struck me as heavy-handed and didactic. As with The Ogress and the Orphans, I hate fictional Donald Trumps in children's books. I had a very similar reaction to this book as OGRESS. Yes, I agree with and understand the point. But the journey was painful.

When the reader gets to the twist and learns that the first half of the book is from a child's imagination I suppose we are meant to forgive how over-the-top it is. But I didn't like the second half of the book either. I found it interesting at first but it went on too long without much of a plot -- just lots of lessons to learn.

I decided to give this three stars despite my negative reading experience. I know the lessons in this book are not obvious to everyone (though they really should be). I think McBride wrote a novel about American racism and Black history in part because some states are trying to ban this type of information from reaching children. If this book reaches children who otherwise wouldn't know this stuff, that's a win. But it's very depressing to think of all the kids who might need this book to know this stuff because it should be part of basic education.

[Alex Richey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is hard to label with my usual genre tags. I felt the same way after reading Me: Moth, so it's not too surprising, and I really enjoyed the feeling of thinking I knew how this was going to go only for it to be completely different by the end. Amber McBride's talent for pulling readers by their heart strings into empathy is astounding. This story was absolutely heartbreaking and visceral, and so so important.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh. Not even really a fantasy. The speculative stuff is a story a girl tells herself because she isn’t handling her grief over her siblings’ deaths very well (understandable) and it’s full of very thinly veiled references to modern problems of systemic and singular racist acts, and narrated by a girl who both in her fictional world and in real life likes to tell poems (I tend to dislike free verse, so I was grumpy) and speak in metaphors that she always carefully explains (the leaves weren’t really a carpet, that’s just what they felt like). Once she calls this a simile and I was even grumpier.

In the real world it makes sense because she’s having a real problem with disappearing into daydreams and is in therapy for it, so probably her family is hyper alert to any signs she is distancing from reality. But it was tedious to read. And the future stuff in her story was vaguely interesting so when we flipped to her mundane world of anxiety, depression and therapy I was disappointed, especially since her big secret wasn’t a secret and she never finished her story because she was getting better thanks to the saintly Big Sister and therapist. So lots of poetry I was allergic to, lots of imagery that the author paints giant arrows around, and little SF. Probably the only non mundane thing was that the vaccines for the pandemic made a scar like a TB shot.

Not my cup of tea, but might be good for kids who like poetry or sad dog books. Come to think of it, I don’t know many Black sad dog books, so here’s one.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really really good. Coping with the trauma of the last few years. Highly recommend.

[LaTosha Webber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listen to it with the kids. It started off really interesting and a little sad, and it got sadder. I cried at least 3 times. At times I worried it might have been too much for a 10&6 yo but they enjoyed it a lot. The more history it talked about the more they into it the got. Love and light to all the little Black kids who feel too much!

[USOM · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)

Having loved Me (Moth), I was so excited for Gone Wolf. And it was 100% worth it. Gone Wolf almost immediately captivated me with its middle grade dystopia atmosphere a shade away from our own. A world with division, experimentation, and oppression. I only continued to fall deeper in love with Gone Wolf. Not to mention, there are some plot twists that legitimately had me gasping. I had to tell everyone about them. Ultimately Gone Wolf is a fabulous middle grade story that examines the effects of racism, privilege, and a divided society on kids.

[Trigger Warning Database]

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Slavery & forced labour
Racism (theme)
Anxiety & agoraphobia
Death of siblings
Mentions of the real murders of Black Americans by the police
Death of a pet

[ImogenX · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wish this book ended with the first half. It was excellent as a standalone story. The second half feels like a separate book tacked on. It repeats whole paragraphs from the first half, and excerpts from another in-world book. Then has the characters summarize the quoted material. At times it feels like a student working toward a word count- filling space with quotes and repetition for no discernible reason.

This is my second read by this author, and the second time I've felt like her good ideas are poisoned by overworked dough. A concept is brilliant the first time it's explained, good the second. Irritating the third time, and ruinous beyond that. I hope someday her work is allowed to shine on its own.

[Patricia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I used to beta read, and it was always interesting to see how a story wasn't working. (There were occasions where stories were working, but they were rare.) It's less interesting to see a story not working in a published novel.

This begins with a weird and overwrought story, and then shifts into a different story with really terrible characterization (how realistic is it that a counselor would verbalize their internal dialogue?), magical saviors (Would the Big Sister do absolutely nothing wrong and push boundaries in the most perfect way?), and an unrealistic number of people walking around Charlotte on a weekday.

[NurseKelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Inmate 11. That is all she is ever called. Inmate 11. She is blue, after all. Blue people don’t deserve nicknames. They are hardly people. They are “it.” Her teachers are trying to indoctrinate in her that she is less than, not equal to, a slave. Her blue skin makes her inferior to her white/clone counterparts. But she doesn’t believe them. She will not learn that. So she rises up. And she flees.

This was a completely unexpected and captivating read. Told with almost fanciful undertones about race, the pandemic, slavery, it nearly comes off as a dystopian historical fiction, if that makes sense. As a white person, it’s a must read. It shows you the raw and dirty and gritty and honest and unfiltered and graphic truth of how Black people have been treated in America for hundreds of years. It touches on the generational and traumatic effects of how white people have treated Black people. It even weaves in present day issues that Black people face in a world that declared them “free” then made it impossible to exist freely.

[Anni (annithebookaholic) · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's honestly so hard to review this because it was just sooo good!

I loved this. Amber McBride writes such unique stories that I always end up loving. The premise of this was so interesting and the book delivered on it perfectly. The writing was beautiful and really gets you to connect with the characters. I also had a personal connection with the main characters because my childhood dog was also named Iira!

The way this book connects history with the present and future was so well done and really gets you to think about the themes of the book. Race and grief are present throughout the whole story.

I loved the multimedia aspect of this. It really highlighted the importance of the historical facts as well as the injustices of the future society.

[Jesse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a gut punch of a book! I was enthralled with the first part and how it re-examined events that actually happened with a slight refocus. It was captivating and left me sitting with my mouth hanging open more than once. I liked the first part better, but I was equally as devastated with the second. 🐺

[Books Amongst Friends · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to love Gone Wolf by Amber McBride, and for the first part, I did.

MY THOUGHTS💭: The book starts by plunging us into a dystopian future where white elites existing as Clones and Black people are referred to as “Blues.” This is a chilling vision of a post-second Civil War world, where a new system is built to preserve the dark legacy of slavery. Intriguing, right? I was hooked and ready for a sci-fi thriller that explored this world in depth.

But then, in the second part, the focus shifts, and McBride veers into an “is it real or is it not” narrative style that bridges the gap between reality and the impending doom felt by a child during the pandemic. For me, that narrative approach often lacks appeal, and here it disrupted the fascinating setup she established at the beginning. I kept wishing she’d committed to the world she built, digging deeper into the dystopian elements and fully exploring the themes of social uprising, identity, racism, and oppression.

That said, I could absolutely see Gone Wolf making an amazing film, especially if it centered on the world created in the book’s first half. McBride’s vision is powerful, and with a bit more focus, it could be truly unforgettable.

[Liz P · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will be honest… I had a hard time getting into this book for about the first third of it. I’m not sure if it was because I was listening to it or if it is just because it is not my preferred genre. However, I persevered and really enjoyed the last 2/3 of the book. And while it is listed as middle grades, I would really put it more in a young adult category because the concepts of the book are so deep.

[Josephine Sorrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gone Wolf by Amber McBride is beautifully written, through the imagination of a young Black girl trapped in a harsh world. Her life is told from two perspectives and two times, in the years of 2022 and 2111.

This Dystopian novel combines history and the today’s ongoing pandemic.

A 12-year-old Black girl deals with fear, grief, pain, and suffering caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and America’s history of enslavement and racist violence.
It’s the year 2111, and Inmate Eleven is undergoing a test. She must decide which is better: the blond, blue-eyed, light-skinned doll or the doll with blue skin and hair like her own. Inmate Eleven lives in an unimaginably cruel world. She is a Blue, separated from the pale-skinned Clones and has been isolated in a cage her whole life. Her only source of comfort is her dog Ira who is just as restless. He often goes wolf pacing the small cell in restless abandon.

The dystopian and unique novel is fictional, but also shares a lot of important black history that aids in understanding black lives in the U.S. from slavery to today.

The story is raw and powerful, and will appeal to a select group of middle grade readers. I’d say the serious and thinker type.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Acquired ARC from Netgalley. This book was so powerful and I've never read something so honest that was geared towards J Fic readers. Usually when books for kids are talking about things like racism or prejudice, they talk about society at large or maybe parent groups if it takes place at a school but I've never seen something so outright talking about our real corrupt government before (as opposed to a fictionalized evil in fantasy or dystopian setting). I also very much appreciated that the parts that took place during 2022 had people that were still being cautious about the pandemic and had characters that were still acknowledging that the pandemic is still ongoing. I loved the big and complex feelings Imogen was having and that the book was written in a way that was accessible to kids without pandering or talking down. I actually have so many feelings about this book that I cannot put into words but it is special and I cannot wait to purchase it for my library.

[C. · Rating 1 out of 5]

I finished the book to make sure I wasn't missing something that would change how I felt about it. But, unfortunately, this book falls flat in many ways and reads like pulling teeth. The pacing is slow and awkward: some parts are long and DENSE with metaphors (the phrase "that's what it feels like" is used about three times every chapter) with little action/progress, while the most progressed parts of the story feel hasty and brushed over. It makes any build-up of a reveal, a new plot element, a new character, etc. in this "dystopian world" feel dull. And then, half way through the book, we change directions and switch to the present, which makes all the plot holes you sat through in the first half that much worse.

On the other hand, a lot of the political/societal critique is way too on the nose and, even worse, the philosophy of the characters are a mess. It is quite a choice to plop a MLK character into your dystopian society where slavery is now legal again and he says something to the effect of 'we're just as bad as them if we turn to violence.' I'm sorry??? Come again? Are we really suggesting that violent resistance is "just as bad" as the people that brought back chattel slavery and the Jim-Crow South? I know MLK had his own philosophy and I'm not suggesting to erase that, but it is infuriating to have this narrative constantly put on Black people as if violent struggles are not very much an important part of our history, especially during Pre-Civil War America. We did not peacefully protest our way out of being enslaved and then the very idea that chattel slavery can be solved by voting is just...nasty work.

[christinac_reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gone Wolf by Amber McBride is a dystopian middle grade novel set in the year 2111 that discusses the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and Black history - violence, racism, slavery, xenophobia, and generational trauma - from the eyes of a 12 year old. She has no name. She's simply called Inmate Eleven. The world Inmate Eleven lives in is cruel and fractured and we open the book to a scene where she's asked to choose which doll is better: a blond hair, blue-eyed, and light skinned one or a doll that looks exactly like her. We also see scenes through the eyes of Imogen in the year 2022 who explores the healing power of storytelling.

Amber McBride is a genius at storytelling. She is a master of her craft. The story is complex and layered, telling the true life dystopian experience that Black Americans live through. The prose is stunning and reels you in effortlessly.

While this is a middle grade novel, I highly recommend everyone from every age and all walks of life to read this book and truly understand the multitude of lessons that McBride tries to impart. This story targets your emotions and narrows down such broad, and far reaching topics to individual experiences, making the narrative accessible to readers of all ages.

Most striking to me was the significance of a name, and how essential it is that we don't forget names in history. This hurt, and beautifully so. This was extremely powerful and absolutely stunning.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners, and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read all of McBride's books published so far, this author's talents know no bounds. From Moth to Whimsy and now Imogen- readers FEEL the characters and their situations. Gone Wolf is exceptional in bridging metaphors of a fictional example of oppression to meet and cross over into real events. Inmate Eleven's character is delightfully childlike while also smart and introspective, and readers will see big changes as Imogen builds new relationships and addresses pain from the past. This book is a serious contender for Newbery and CSK awards, and I hope it gets the attention it deserves. I can't wait to read what this author writes next!

[Sally Kruger]

Author Amber McBride's latest book is an education on what it means to be a young Black person in our controversial society.

It is 2111 and Inmate Eleven, a twelve-year old girl, is learning what it means to be Blue in the Bible Boot of the United States. She lives in a small room with her pet wolf Ira. Most of the time she is alone. Her visitors are medical staff who take her blood for testing, and a woman who educates her on how to behave and about facts deemed important for Blues to know.

One day she meets Larkin, and her life broadens. She is given a larger room. She is taken to meet Congress and President Tuba. She is allowed to go outside for the first time. According to what she is learning, the United States went through a second Civil War in 2016 splitting the country in two. The Bible Boot governed by President Tuba uses Blues as slaves or in Inmate Eleven's case, as DNA matches for important Elites.

After meeting Inmate Eleven and seeing life in 2111, readers are transported back to 2022. Imogene, a twelve-year old, is adjusting to life after a pandemic. Her active imagination and fears created by isolation during the pandemic have her fighting to overcome trauma that almost paralyzes her. With the help of her mother and a new friend, Imogene begins to understand her place in the world as a young Black girl and how she can conquer the sadness she insists makes her "blue."

Amber McBride's unique style and voice come through this new story as she takes readers on an adventure that connects in sometimes frightening ways to our present and future. Definitely worth the read.

[Caitlyn Gloriod · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gone Wolf is a speculative fiction novel that tells a story about a 12-year-old girl named Inmate 11, aka Imogen. This novel is told in two separate stories, which I thought was a really compelling way to read the book. Inmate 11 is blue and has been confined all her life in a small room with her wolf, Ira, as her only companion. Inmate 11 is the biological match for the President’s son and suddenly realizes everything she has been prepared for has been a lie. The second part of this story reflects Imogen, who has had her life turned upside down by the pandemic and cannot stop daydreaming. She has been taken to doctor after doctor by her Ma, trying to get her to face reality. The author, Amber McBride, does an amazing job of taking you through history and emphasizing the importance of Black empowerment. The meaning of ‘Gone Wolf’ hits heartstrings on so many levels after reading this book.

At first, I was a bit confused throughout the book, but as the second part flowed on, I really saw how it all came together, and my heart broke. I felt like I went on an emotional journey with Imogen, Ira, and Larkin. This book had me asking lots of questions and looking at what I had learned in history in an entirely different light. I thought this book was beautiful and has the potential to teach kids in a classroom a lot. There is a lot of discussion that can be done with this book, and I would love to have it in my class. The author did some extremely powerful writing within Gone Wolf.

[Book · Rating 4 out of 5]

"...Sometimes stories tell us something true even if the story is not all the way true." - Gone Wolf , pg. 209.

(No Spoiler Review)

Gone Wolf by Amber McBride is an amazing dystopian middle grade novel about a young Black girl named Inmate Eleven who is being held in a research facility as a candidate to become the president's son's genetic double. This is a sad, heart wrenching story that explores a variety of subjects, from healthy and unhealthy coping mechanisms to racism to the impact of COVID-19 on the young people in our world. Yet, all of these difficult topics are written so masterfully that it's easy to understand for kids and adults.

What really takes this book from a 4.25 to a 4.5 for me is what happens in the second part of this novel. The way the second part completely transforms the meaning of the first part, and really helps the more abstract ideas in the first part hit home that is relatable. (You'll have to read it to understand what I mean.) It's expertly done, and adds even more depth to an already deep story.

I consider this book to be a great novel to use as a conversation starter or as the basis for a short unit in school that explores African American history. I'd recommend it for both middle school students and also older elementary school students (ages 10-14). It's a rough read, but a very important one.

Final Rating: 4.5/5

[Sacha · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

This is one of the grittier and more creative middle grade novels I've read in quite a while, and it is going to really strike others who are also lucky to encounter it, regardless of their age.

I like as many surprises as possible, and seeing how all of the parts work both independently and collectively is the treat of this novel. What I expect to take away from it, though, is that it's also utterly heartrending. Trauma is the focal point, and more specifically, TALKING about trauma and telling stories to make sense of it is what McBride and these characters do best. This is a compelling read, but it's not an easy one at all.

I can't wait to hear how young readers receive this, and I'll be recommending this to adult students studying literature written for this audience.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Young Listeners for this alc, which I received in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars.
This book truly bent my brain--it was heartbreaking, gripping, thought provoking and beautiful all in one. McBride's ability to depict how trauma can manifest in a young person's mind was astounding to me. As I was reading the second half of the novel, I was so interested to see how the circumstances of Imogen's real life created the world of Inmate Eleven. This story doesn't shy away from tough topics, instead it lays bare the truth of how systematic racism and pandemic trauma can impact the mind of a young girl and what that looks like. Imogen struggles so much in this book, but it is truly heartening to see how patient and loving friendships can bring about healing. I often say that I think adults can benefit from reading middle grade, but this book in particular is one that I feel adults and kids alike should pick up. I can't wait to read more by Amber McBride!