Ramblefoot book review

This is a lost contemporary classic. 

Rating: 10/10

Ramblefoot tells the story of a young wolf named Raspail. After his mother dies, he learns to live on his own from a young age. Soon, Raspail is accepted into the Cob Ash wolf pack, he falls in love with a she-wolf, Kileo, and plays with the other wolves all day, until...

He is framed for his adopted father's murder. After going mute Raspail disappears into the forests, wishing he could tell the pack, that he didn't kill his own father. He decides to become a ramblefoot and wander on his own without restrictions.

He meets other Ramblers, and soon forms friendships along the way. Repetto is a smaller adult wolf that provides some comedy relief throughout the second half of the story, he is also on of Raspail's friends. Hagi also appears as a mentor of sorts through the second half.

The book climaxes with an epic battle of sorts and ends with a happy, movie-like ending.

The novel is one of the closest stories to actual wolf life I've read in a while. The way the wolves discuss territoriality, mating, eating, and fighting, makes it seem very real. Ken Kaufman has created a beautiful world and wonderful characters. You will form emotional attachments to some of them. Ramblefoot is certainly a good novel, but it is probably one of the best novels based on wolves ever written.

For Parents: Ramblefoot contains:
Language (females referred to as bitches and euphemisms for the f word (fack), ass and shit)
Violence (wolves meet there ends in several ways throughout the novel: being shot, caught in traps (including a pup), getting throats and bellies ripped out, a whole family of coyotes including pups are murdered, and one wolf slowly bleeds to death in via thorns constant references to wolves eating, (when the wolves eat too much they become meatdrunk, somewhat like the real thing.
Sexual content Two pups discover their parents stuck together after mating, wolf anatomy is discussed, knotting is discussed, Two wolves mate, and afterword have to fight off enemies while still tied together. There is a theme of incest throughout the novel and an unsuccessful rape attempt. (A brother, attracted to his sister while she is in heat, tries to mate with her, but he is fought off. References to erections.
OK for 15 and up

Copyright The Review Cafe February 11, 2017