Wildwood (novel) facts for kids
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| Author | Colin Meloy |
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| Illustrator | Carson Ellis |
| Cover artist | Carson Ellis |
| Country | US |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Wildwood Chronicles |
| Genre | Children's novel |
| Publisher | Balzer + Bray (HarperCollins) |
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Publication date
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August 30, 2011 |
| Media type | Print (hardback, acid-free paper) |
| Pages | 541 (hardback 1st edition) |
| ISBN | 978-0-06-202468-8 |
| OCLC | 703205798 |
| Followed by | Under Wildwood: The Wildwood Chronicles, Book Two |
Wildwood: The Wildwood Chronicles, Book 1 is an exciting children's fantasy novel from 2011. It was written by The Decemberists' Colin Meloy and illustrated by his wife, Carson Ellis. This 541-page book is inspired by classic fantasy stories and old folk tales. It tells the story of two seventh-graders who get pulled into a secret, magical forest. They are trying to save a baby who has been kidnapped by crows.
The children find themselves in a huge struggle between different groups. They also learn about their own connection to this magical world. Along the way, they face adults who are often scared or dishonest. The beautiful nature and unique feel of Portland, Oregon, are a big part of the book's setting. Carson Ellis worked closely with Colin Meloy while he was writing. She created 85 illustrations for the book. Reviewers especially liked these drawings and the old-fashioned design of the book. Most reviews were positive, saying the story was gripping and right for its age group. Wildwood was on the New York Times Best Seller list for Children's Chapter Books for two weeks. It also won the 2012 The E.B. White Read Aloud Award.
Contents
Plot Summary: A Wild Adventure Begins
Part One: Into the Impassable Wilderness
The story starts with Prue and her baby brother, Mac, in a park. Suddenly, a group of crows swoops down and carries Mac away! Prue chases after them, and her classmate Curtis follows her. They watch as the crows fly into a mysterious place called the Impassable Wilderness. Prue goes home and pretends Mac is still with her. The next morning, she heads for the Wilderness. She finds Curtis has followed her again. Prue doesn't want him along, but before she can send him back, they get separated. They are running from Coyote Soldiers.
Curtis is captured and taken to Alexandra, the leader of the coyotes. Meanwhile, Prue rides a mail truck to South Wood. There, Prue finds a government that is confusing and doesn't work well. The leaders use police tactics and fear of outsiders to stay in power. Prue eventually meets Crown Prince Owl Rex of the Avian Principality. He tells her how Alexandra was sent away from the area. Soon after, he is arrested himself.
Alexandra's son, Alexei, died in a horse accident. Then her husband, Grigor, died of sadness. To bring Alexei back, Alexandra hired the best toymakers in Wildwood. They made a new body for her son. She then used dark magic to bring his soul back to life. Later, Alexei learned the truth about his death and rebirth. He purposely broke a part of his inner workings, causing him to die a second time. Alexandra was exiled for using dark magic and planned her revenge. Owl Rex suggests that Prue cross Wildwood to find help from the Mystics of North Wood.
Meanwhile, Alexandra is being nice to Curtis. She gives him a fancy uniform and makes him an officer in the coyote army. In a fight against bandits, Curtis accidentally breaks a large cannon. This makes him a war hero for the coyotes. He then finds Mac in Alexandra's headquarters. She shows him her plan: she will sacrifice the baby to the magical ivy of the Wood. This will make the ivy spread quickly and take over everything. Alexandra offers to share this power with Curtis, but he refuses. He is then locked in a cage hanging from the ceiling with other captured bandits and disloyal coyotes.
Part Two: A Deceptive Return Home
Prue flies to North Wood on the back of an eagle sent by Owl Rex. But a coyote archer shoots her down. Brendan, the King of the Bandits, finds her and offers to help. However, they are both captured in a coyote attack. Brendan is put in prison with Curtis, while Prue is taken to Alexandra. Alexandra promises Prue that she will find Mac. She convinces Prue to leave the Woods.
In prison, Curtis tells Brendan about Alexandra's plan. Then, Curtis leads an escape! He earns the trust of the coyote and bandit prisoners. Prue returns home. There, she learns a shocking secret from her parents. They could only have Prue and Mac because they made a deal with Alexandra to use her magic. But Alexandra's price was the second child Prue's mother would have. Realizing she has been tricked, Prue quickly returns to Wildwood to rescue Mac.
Part Three: The Battle for the Plinth
Back in the Impassable Wilderness, Prue travels to see the Mystics who lead North Wood. At the same time, Curtis and the other escapees rejoin the bandits. They set out to stop Alexandra. Prue warns the North Wood Elder Mystic, Iphigenia, about the danger. The citizens gather farm tools and kitchen items for weapons and march south. Prue rides her bicycle ahead and convinces the bandits to join forces.
Just as Alexandra is about to sacrifice Mac, the armies meet in an ivy-filled ruin. Brendan gives a speech to inspire his fighters. He names the combined army the Wildwood Irregulars. The Battle for the Plinth begins, and the Wildwood Irregulars are almost defeated. As Alexandra prepares to complete the sacrifice, Iphigenia confronts her. Curtis and the rest of the army make a final push. They expect to be defeated. But then, the sky fills with an army of eagles and other birds from the Avians!
The battle turns against the coyote army. Prue discovers she can control plants, just like the Mystics. She uses her new skill to make tree branches snatch Mac away from Alexandra. Brendan shoots Alexandra with an arrow, and the Ivy consumes her. Brendan is now in control of the ivy. Iphigenia tells him to make it sleep, and he does. The victorious Wildwood Irregulars gather. They march to the gates of South Wood and demand that the corrupt government step down. A new, peaceful order begins among the groups of The Wood. Prue and Curtis say goodbye as new friends. Prue goes home with Mac, while Curtis stays behind to start a new life as a bandit.
Main Characters: Heroes and Villains
In Wildwood, people are either from The Wood, or they are "Outsiders" (from Portland). Prue and Curtis are special "half-breeds." This means they are Outsiders who can enter The Wood. A special "aura or shine" helps people tell who is who. The first human Prue meets in The Wood is an old mail truck driver named Richard. He is the Postmaster General of South Wood. She sees something in him that makes him seem different, "a kind of aura or shine." People from The Wood can always tell that Prue and Curtis are Outsiders. But only the calm people of North Wood can see that Prue and Curtis have a dual nature. They were born outside The Wood but can still pass through its magical barrier.
Prue: The Determined Rescuer
"Mother," Prue had said, now pouring rice milk over her cereal, "I told you. I'm a vegetarian. Ergo: no bacon. She had read that word, ergo, in a novel she'd been reading. That was the first time she had used it. She wasn't sure if she'd used it right, but it felt good.
Prue McKeel is 13 years old and in seventh grade. She is very smart and loves drawing nature. She knows a lot about birds from a book. Prue takes advanced English classes with Curtis. Like her parents and Curtis, Prue is very "Portland." This means she likes things like yoga, being a vegetarian, and single-speed bicycles. She even fixes her own bikes!
Prue is strong-willed, determined, and brave. She is inspired by the detective Nancy Drew as she tries to rescue her brother. Along the way, she also saves Curtis and The Wood itself. Unlike Curtis, she isn't easily scared. She stands up to powerful people like Lars Svik (the Governor of South Wood), Crown Prince Owl Rex, and even the scary Alexandra. Prue's birth was special. Her parents had trouble having children, so Alexandra used magic to help them. Because of this, Prue shares some of The Wood's magic. This is why she can cross the magical barrier that protects The Wood. Colin Meloy said that Prue is a mix of different people. She is partly like Carson Ellis was as a kid, and her "inner world" comes from Ellis's childhood. She is also based on a friend's niece, who has a strong independent spirit.
Curtis: The Reluctant Hero
A voice, a woman's voice, sounded from above them. "And that's why we're here, dear Curtis."
Curtis looked up and saw Alexandra, the Dowager Governess, astride a jet-black horse, emerge from over a hillock between two massive cedars. She extended a willowy hand. "Come," she said to him, "I'll show you the world."
Curtis Mehlberg is also 13 years old and in seventh grade. He is Prue's classmate, but they aren't close friends at the start of Wildwood. They used to like drawing superhero fan art together. But Prue moved on to drawing plants, leaving Curtis and his love for comic books behind. At first, Curtis is a bit awkward and a "loner." He lacks Prue's confidence and is easily pushed around by Prue, Alexandra, and others.
However, Curtis grows a lot during the book. He gains a stronger sense of who he is after he has to choose sides and stand up to Alexandra. He is forced into being an officer in the coyote army. He accidentally does something brave in battle, which makes him stand out. Later, he freely chooses to become a full member of the bandits. He decides to stay in Wildwood, even though Prue goes home to St. Johns. Like Prue, Curtis is a "half-breed" who can enter The Wood. The book doesn't fully explain his connection, but Curtis wonders if it's because of his strange relatives. Colin Meloy said that Curtis is a version of himself. As a child, Meloy "desperately longed to be taken away to another world."
Alexandra: The Tragic Villain
Alexandra is the main bad guy in Wildwood. She used to be the Governess of South Wood but was sent away. She is charming and beautiful. She is also much more refined than her wild coyote soldiers, whom she only recently tamed. Even though she is cruel and wants to kill, she is also a bit sad. She is a grieving mother, and her madness is partly explained by the loss of her child. Carson Ellis, the illustrator, said that drawing Alexandra holding a knife over Mac made her "blood run cold" as a mom herself.
Alexandra's plan drives the action of Wildwood. She wants revenge on everyone and everything in The Wood. She plans to use Prue's brother, Mac, as a blood sacrifice. This spell would let her control The Wood's Ivy, which would then grow out of control and destroy everything living in The Wood. This threat of the magical ivy taking over is similar to how English ivy can take over real forests, like Forest Park.
The Bandits: A Loyal Group
The bandits are a small group of thieves led by Brendan, the Bandit King. Brendan is a wild, tough man with curly orange hair often tangled with leaves. Curtis helps him and other bandit prisoners escape from Alexandra's prison. Because of this, Curtis is named a bandit. Their community isn't doing very well, especially with the economy being down. The bandits are threatened by Alexandra's ivy, just like the rest of the forest. So, Brendan is forced to fight alongside the citizens of North Wood and Prue.
Setting: A Magical Portland Forest
The idea behind Wildwood is that Forest Park in Portland is "its own secret country." It is filled with many different and strange people. The real Forest Park is about 8 miles long and 1 mile wide. It has 5,100 acres of natural woods, mostly new growth with some very old trees. All of this is within the city limits of Portland. This place sparked Colin Meloy's imagination. The fantasy version of Forest Park is the most unique part of Wildwood. The book turns Forest Park into "the darkest possible woods."
Outsiders, the people of Portland, call it the Impassable Wilderness. They know it as a forbidden, secret area that is rarely visited or spoken about. Children are taught to stay away and eventually stop asking why it's forbidden. But unknown to these Outsiders, the Wilderness is full of magical talking animals and people. Some live in the peaceful, almost medieval conditions of North Wood. The country of South Wood, however, is industrialized with technology from the 1800s and early 1900s. North Wood and South Wood are separated by Wildwood, which is an untamed area with bandits and wild coyotes. Travelers, like the Postmaster's truck, make the risky journey between the northern and southern countries using the Long Road through Wildwood. Tucked between Wildwood and South Wood is the Avian Principality, a nation of birds.
Almost every place in the book's imaginary setting comes from real places in Portland. The story begins in the main characters' neighborhood, St. Johns. Then it moves across the Willamette River and into the Impassable Wilderness (The Wood). Pittock Mansion, just south of Forest Park, appears under its real name. But in the book, it is the government building of South Wood. The Oregon Zoo is shown as the South Wood Prison. The Audubon Society of Portland is in the same general area as the Avian Principality. Carson Ellis said there are many large trees in Forest Park, but no single tree was the model for the North Wood Council Tree.
The St. Johns Bridge is missing and unknown to the people of Wildwood's Portland. Prue and Curtis can only get into the Impassable Wilderness by a risky dash over the train tracks of the Railroad Bridge. This bridge is based on the Burlington Northern Railroad Bridge 5.1. The St. Johns Bridge does appear briefly as the Ghost Bridge. It is brought into existence by a magic spell.
The book also shows a typical view of Portland's youth culture through Prue, Curtis, and Prue's parents. One critic described the kids as "bespectacled, bike-riding, vinyl-browsing, Kurosawa-referencing children." Descriptions of real Portland elements are mixed to create a "richly satisfying weave of reality and fantasy."
Writing Style and Illustrations
Wildwood reminds readers of several classic fantasy and children's stories. These include J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth books, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The idea of crows kidnapping a child comes from Irish folktales and from Maurice Sendak's Outside Over There. In that story, a girl rescues her brother from goblins. The writing style often uses old-fashioned language, similar to the songs by The Decemberists.
The book mixes different technologies from different time periods. For example, characters use cutlasses, blunderbusses, and flintlocks. But they also use howitzers, semi-automatic pistols, bicycles, trucks, and trains. The authors just picked whatever they thought was "coolest." For example, when Prue first meets the South Wood postman, he threatens her with a shotgun. But in the same paragraph, it's called a double-barrelled rifle, then a shotgun again. Also, the book says Prue has a single-speed bicycle, but the illustrations show her bike with derailleur gears, which are for multi-speed bikes.
Carson Ellis's Unique Illustrations
Carson Ellis's illustrations are often seen on Decemberists album covers. They fit well with the band's folk music, love of nature, and old-fashioned themes. Her drawings have a dark and playful style, like the art of Edward Gorey and the stories of Roald Dahl.
Ellis said her favorite drawing in Wildwood's 85 illustrations is of a badger pulling a rickshaw. This is a small drawing compared to the full-page color pictures of important scenes. Colin Meloy said the scene with the badger wasn't vital to the plot. An editor even wanted to cut it. But Meloy had written it specifically because he thought Ellis would enjoy drawing the badger and rickshaw, so he fought to keep it. One reviewer highlighted this image, saying, "If you like stories in which spunky kids emerge from secret tunnels only to be greeted by smartly outfitted badgers operating rickshaws, this is your book." Ellis commented, "It's such a great image."
Book Category and Background
Most news articles and reviews call Wildwood a children's novel or a middle grade book. Some also call it young adult fiction. The publisher, HarperCollins, suggested the book for ages 9 and up. The book is 541 pages long, similar to many books Colin Meloy enjoyed when he was the target age for Wildwood. Carson Ellis noted that "a 10 year old kid can be a voracious reader." The book is also sold to adults, especially fans of The Decemberists and adult fans of children's and young adult books.
Meloy and Ellis first thought of the idea for the book before Meloy started his band, The Decemberists, in 2000. When they first moved to Portland, they lived in a warehouse. They "had this idea of working on a novel together... because we enjoyed making up stories." Meloy was influenced by books he read growing up, like Tolkien and Lloyd Alexander's The Chronicles of Prydain. Ellis was influenced by The Chronicles of Narnia series as a child. The illustrations in those books directly inspired her work. Unlike her past work, where the text was finished before the drawings, Ellis worked with Meloy throughout the writing process for Wildwood.
After writing the first 80 pages, Meloy paused the book for several years to work on his music. Ellis focused on her book illustrations. When they finally started working on the novel again, the title changed from How Ruthie Ended the War to Wildwood. The character of Ruthie became Prue, and her goal changed from finding her lost father to her kidnapped brother. Meloy said the early version of the story was "wildly inappropriate for children." Once they restarted, Ellis said it took about two years to finish the novel.
Future Books and Film
In 2011, Colin Meloy said he planned to write at least two more books for the Wildwood Chronicles series. He planned for the second Wildwood novel to have Prue return to The Wood, with her life "very much in danger." The story would involve "scheming industrialists trying to worm their way into Wood" from the Outside. It would also show a much "weirder Portland," where magic isn't just in The Wood. Meloy said he would no longer limit the creatures of The Wood to only animals native to Forest Park. The second book in the series, Under Wildwood: The Wildwood Chronicles, Book Two, came out on September 25, 2012. The third and final book, Wildwood Imperium, was released on February 3, 2015.
In 2011, Laika, an animation studio in Oregon, bought the rights to make Wildwood into a stop-motion animated movie. They also made the trailer for the book.
Images for kids
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Carson Ellis and Colin Meloy at a book signing in Portland.
