Wolves

Emily Gravatt (2005)
Reviewed in Magpies (vol. 21, no. 1, March 2006, p.22).

The premise of Wolves is quite simple. Rabbit goes to the library and ‘burrows’ a book about wolves.

book as an artefact/implied readers
- The title page has a photograph of the book itself, complete with school stamp, and a subsequent page has a removable borrowing card and date slip. In this way, the book has become the story, rather than just a vehicle for telling the story.
- At the end of the book, there is an envelope containing an overdue slip.
- Reader brings prior knowledge of the library borrowing system and as such is able to enjoy puns such as “burrowing” (instead of borrowing) and “Grabbit” (instead of Gravatt).

intertextuality
- There are two narratives running simultaneously in this book and the characters of each story both move in an out of each other’s narrative. However, the rabbit is unaware of this movement, but the wolf is calculating in his movements.

pseudo narrative
- Until the end of the story you are led to believe that all information is factual. However, one the book is torn apart, implying the death of the rabbit, an alternative and happy ending is
provided (where they share a jam sandwich). This blurs the boundaries between fiction and fact.

The physical construction of the book itself engages the reader with its juxtapostion of mixed media. Each subsequent reading will enable the reader to construct further meanings. The way in which the book is “a book within a book” is a novelty young readers will love.

Posted by Frances Eames