An ancient world of wolves, demons and the people living amongst them

I remember when a friend and I both spotted Wolf Brother on the library shelf. Our class was visiting in the afternoon and we were each supposed to choose a book to take home and read. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was hoping to find, but it wasn’t long before Wolf Brother jumped out at me and I could tell just by the hardback cover I was going to love it. My friend and I – 8 or 9 at the time – both read the inside blurb and even argued a little over who would get to read it first, but in the end I was lucky enough to take it home.

I stayed up for ages that night and the bear terrified me as a kid, but it was such an engrossing story I couldn’t put it down. Torak and Renn were both relatable in their own ways despite the wildly different time period, and the idea of clans basing themselves around different animal guardians was fascinating to read about. Wolf’s perspective and the unique way he described things were especially charming.

I later read the rest of the books as soon as I could, and a couple of years after the first, my family even took me to the UKWCT to meet Michelle and the wolves around the time of Outcast’s impending release. It was great to hear about her experiences that inspired events in the book and it’s one of the most memorable days from when I was younger.

As someone who aspires to one day also publish a story worth reading, Michelle’s wonderful storytelling and worldbuilding have always been an inspiration to me. Over the years, I’ve introduced several of my family and friends of varying ages to the series and everyone so far has loved it. Even now – 15 or 16 years since I first read Wolf Brother – the timeless appeal remains much like it does with my other childhood favourites such as Harry Potter and Narnia, and I find that Wolf Brother is one of those rare stories where you just can’t help but immerse yourself in the world time and time again.