With a new cover and newly designed interiors, Wolf Island is sure to be a howl! It's a vivid, full colour portrait of nature, and the fragile balance of a natural ecosystem.
Set on an island in Northern Ontario, the Wolf Island story, based on an actual event, is a moving chronicle of what happens when the highest link in a food chain is removed. The resultant population growth, food shortage, and starvation affect every member of the chain.
A family of wolves leave their island environment. Although, at first, their absence is unnoticed, nature's delicately balanced ecosystem comes undone over a period of months, and the mice, rabbits, squirrels, and even owls fight for survival. Finally, the accidental return of the wolf family to their home restores the island habitat to health.
Celia Godkin's dramatic, full colour illustrations will inspire readers of all ages. Her scientific portrait of an ecosystem and its component species will not be easily forgotten.
"Although the text remains unchanged from the 1993 edition (Freeman), larger page size and improved formatting make the story easier to share with groups. Instead of fading into the illustrations, the text blocks are highlighted and framed. The pictures themselves are brighter and more sharply focused versions of the originals. Pages are fewer in number, necessitating some shifts of text and the elimination of a few images. Overall, the revisions add to the books visual appeal. . . Libraries without the original book should definitely consider purchasing this one, and collections with an older copy may want to substitute this more readable version."
— School Library Journal
Celia Godkin
Celia trained as a biologist and has worked as a scientific illustrator. An illustration job preparing signs for the Winnipeg zoo led to a collaboration on the book Endangered Species: Canada's Disappearing Wildlife. Encouraged by this success Celia illustrated an ecology story she had written years earlier and showed it to her publisher. The resulting book, Wolf Island, won the Children's Literature Roundtables Best Information Book Award and led to a succession of information storybooks.
Information Book of the Year
Mr. Christie's Book Award nominee
Shortlisted for 1989 Mr. Christie's Children's Book Award for illustration Children's Literature
Roundtable of Canada 1990 Information Book of the Year
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