Book Review: Warriors 1- Into the Wild

Mamma Bear Book Review

*A bear trundles in with a book under one, fuzzy arm*

 

 

Erin Hunter's fiercely popular middle grade series, Warriors, features warrior cats living in battling clans in the forests just outside our society. In book one, Into the Wild, we meet Rusty, a discontent house cat who just knows he is cut out for more... which of course, he is. 

 

Rusty joins the wild cat clans and becomes FireHeart, and the book follows his introduction to warrior cat life, the members of Thunder clan, and their relationships and ongoing battles with the other cat clans.  Thunder clan is full of new friends, new rules, tests and a few well-placed enemies. 

Hunter does an incredible job of writing feral animals. She's woven a complex societal structure that, while it's middle grade, still managed to keep this adult reader's interest. As an adult reader, some of the plot threads were pretty obvious, but I believe the target audience will find these books to be fresh, engaging, enthralling adventures. My nine year old daughter will testify to their power, as she's already devoured the six book series.

One thing I'd like to mention in reference to furry children's books, I sort of hinted at with my Redwall review. Warriors is a book-series that I appreciate greatly 'as a parent.' The characters are not flat, but their hearts are noble, and the values in the book are something I am happy to expose my children to. 

For the adult reader, Warriors might be a little predictable, the plots and tropes somewhat cliche, but the story itself is still lovely and worth a read. I'm not convinced I'll continue with the series, but anyone in the target age range will definitely be moved to do so, as evidenced by the Warriors books' amazing popularity. 

I give Into the Wild a happy mamma bear four claws up! 

Character: 

The cats of Thunder Clan will not disappoint. They are diverse and distinct and vary from a wise leader to the gentle healer, and battle hardened veteran. Rusty himself is instantly relatable and sympathetic and has a delightful way of stealing the reader's heart.

World Building:

The clan structure and society of the books are likely what has made them so popular. Hunter's world building is delightful and her hints about future events are intriguing and unique, but contain traces some trusty fantasy tropes that gave the reading a pleasurable nostalgic feeling for this old reader.

 

Pacing:  

The story moves at a brisk engaging pace. For me, some of the tension building plot lines seemed fairly obvious and I found myself guessing correctly what the next step would be, but I believe that falls under the "not the target age group" heading and is no fault of the story itself.

 Shiny:

As a parent, the shiny for me was how much joy my daughter found in this book, how it brought reading back into her line of interest and how relaxed and secure I felt allowing her to sink into this world.

~Mammabear