Firstly, I LOVE the concept of this book. We're in a world where the natural, the organic, has been banished and destroyed from inside the city walls to keep everyone safe from the ticks which infest plants and wildlife. Our main character, Juniper, and her brother Bear were born beyond the city walls, in the Wild, and ever since it's been calling to them to return

This book touches on climate change, ecological disaster, population issues, politics. I think it's so important for children to be exposed to these issues in MG literature, as well as adults of course

This book is basically a MG dystopia/utopia and I loved it. The world was incredibly interesting, and Juniper was a bolshy, determined main character. I loved the relationship between Juniper and Bear. Their dynamic was one of love and trust, and Bear's development was incredible as he had to grow up quickly on their journey

This book was everything I look for in a middle grade and more. It told a great story, had morals, and was written so well to suit readers of all ages. I'd highly recommend this to adults and children alike

I read this together with my 10 year old and we were both totally engaged. Completely relevant to the world we find ourselves in, it challenges and causes you to stop and think about what's important. Bear and Juniper are an inspiration to bravery, to set out on a course you know is right and to hold on to hope. Would thoroughly recommend to anyone whose child still relishes a shared story.

#WritersReview: Where the World Turns Wild
Posted on January 21, 2020

Where the World turns Wild

written by Nicola Penfold

cover & inside art by Kate Forrester with Sara Mognol

published by Stripes 2020

352 pages in paperback

travel from walled city to wilderness along a trail of wonder and peril


Summary from NETGALLEY WEBSITE

Animals, trees, flowers, our city forbids them all…

Juniper Greene lives in a walled city from which nature has been banished, following the outbreak of a deadly man-made disease many years earlier. While most people seem content to live in such a cage, she and her little brother Bear have always known about their resistance to the disease, and dream of escaping into the wild. To the one place humans have survived outside of cities. To where their mother is.

When scientists discover that the siblings provide the key to fighting the disease, the pair must flee for their lives. As they journey into the unknown, they soon learn that there’s cruelty in nature as well as beauty. Will they ever find the home they’re searching for?
From A reader’s point of view

It would be easy to get preachy with a book about the eco-catastrophe we are all facing. I am delighted to say Nicola Penfold avoids any worthiness by taking us along with two engaging children on an adventure full of wonder and danger in Where the World turns Wild. We care about Juniper and Bear; we prepare to escape Portia Steel’s authoritarian city beside them; we journey with them further north to find their parents – and we brave all sorts of peril at their side.

And it’s not all desperation and fleeing (although that is so exciting). There are moments of loveliness to remind the reader what we truly care about – special moments with families and friends, and in the natural world. The beautiful cover by Kate Forrester gives you lovely hints of how Juniper and Bear encounter the best of the wilderness.

I would recommend Where the World turns Wild for readers who loved the outdoorsiness of Abi Elphinstone’s Dreamsnatcher Trilogy, who relish Piers Torday and Gill Lewis’s work, and are not too squeamish. Sentimental and cosy does not describe this story. It’s not difficult to read in terms of style, but there are big, chunky ideas to deal with – and some loss.

I do hope this is not the only tale featuring Juniper and Bear from Nicola Penfold: I feel they have so many more stories ahead of them.

Comments from a Writer and Editor’s perspective (spoilers possible)

quick, clever intro to this unsettling future world through Juniper’s own words
beautiful decorative touches clear even in the NetGalley version on my Kindle
focus on the journey that Juniper and her six year old brother Bear make to find their missing parents allows naturally for explanations
sticking to a few believable characters enables us to know them well – so we want to know what happens next
short, exciting chapters – fast moving, not intimidating, tempting you to read on and on and on . . .
contrast of incarcerated existence in the city with desperate need to survive in the wilderness is well done – no sugar-coating here
two part structure amplifies the comparison – neat touches where the children are puzzled, entranced or shocked by natural features we might think commonplace
the set-up of this near-future world and the dreadful Portia Steel are too good to limit to one story – feels like the start of a sequence
clever, timely follow-up from publicist to NetGalley readers like me – which worked as you can see!

I am in awe. This book was the most incredible journey, filled with deep feelings of love and hate, and what it means to truly be ‘wild’.

Where the World Turns Wild is a beautifully imagined tale of an awfully close to reality situation. It imagines a future where humans have destroyed the earth, and so to save it, a select few people known as the ReWilders created a disease that is spread by ticks. Humans that are bitten by the ticks suffer a slow, painful death, giving the Wild a weapon of its own to fight back with. Some humans are immune to the disease; however, the majority are forced to seclude themselves within tight-knit cities filled with strict regimes and a corrupted government. Juniper and her brother bear were born in the Wild but were sent to the city by their parents to live with their grandmother, Annie Rose.
When life inside the city threatens Juniper and Bear’s own lives, they must take action, and venture into the Wild to find their parents and their home.

Firstly, I adored the characters in this book, and I wish I could have had longer with them! Juniper surprised me the most, as she was so brave and level-headed, especially with her younger brother being too young to understand things. She was different to other teenage narrators that I have previously found to be rather irritating, and instead she is very mature, understanding what must be done in order for her and her brother to survive. Bear was the sweetest, and Penfold did an amazing job at capturing the spirit of a six-year-old. He was equal parts charming, annoying and heart-warming, and you couldn’t help but love him.

"𝑩𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔𝒏'𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆. 𝑯𝒆'𝒔 𝒂𝒔 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆" 𝒑.24

The side characters were also a hit for me. They provided extra layers to the story, and though not all were fully developed, I could still understand their personalities from their descriptions and behaviour. My favourite side character has to be a lynx cat called Ghost who really warmed my heart. I adored the strong connection between Juniper, Bear and Annie Rose, and you could really feel just how much they cared for one another.

Penfold does an amazing job of building up the atmosphere, and I could really feel how bleak their city was before they left. There was a huge sense of paranoia build within this book, and my heart was thudding in my chest during the action scenes, as I was so worried for the children’s survival. The way the author describes nature is so vivid and captures the incredible beauty of the Wild compared to the plainness of the city.

"𝑯𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒔. 𝑯𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒐𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒚𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔" 𝒑.307

At its core, this story deals with a huge crisis that we are currently dealing with, and I think that makes this book incredibly important in todays society. With the creation of characters such as Abbott, it shows us how ignorant the human race can be in terms of addressing global warming, and the destruction of nature. It describes the ways that humans have destroyed the world, including deforestation, burning fossil fuels, overfishing etc. By giving us an imagined reality, it lets readers picture what the future could look like if we continue down this path.

This book was so moving and captivating, told with language that is neither difficult to understand, nor extremely bland or simple. It was perfect and I loved the ending, it got me thinking of what could possibly happen next!

I will be posting my review on Goodreads, and on my Instagram @scriptedsolstice.
I will also publish it on Amazon once the book has being released.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this amazing book, I hope I will be considered for future releases!

Juniper Green lives with her Grandmother Annie Rose and six year old brother Bear. An outbreak of a deadly man-mad disease carried by ticks has resulted in the authorities destroying everything wild and green and erecting a buffer zone around the city, closely monitoring its citizens’ activities. Juniper and Bear however are immune to the disease as they once lived in the wild with their parents. They were sent back to the city, with the intention they one day return to live together in the wild. That day comes sooner than Juniper had envisaged and she has to leave her grandmother, and, with Bear, travel miles across dangerous territory. On this journey they face not only hiding their escape from the authorities and the drones which follow them, but also the wildlife, as having been banished from the city, it’s all unknown. Juniper has heard tales of wolves, she now has to face them. She also has to catch their dinner with a trap, bartered on the black market and stop impulsive Bear from eating unknown fruits of the forest.
The Government is acting to supposedly protect its citizens, but the dystopian world in which the children are living is bleak and grey. Ten years ago this would be considered an unlikely dystopian novel. Today, with the environmental crisis more understood, it is a reality. Both children are in touch with nature and cannot understand the attitude of others towards it. This is a great read with an environmental message and wonderfully strong characters in Juniper and Bear.

Where the World Turns Wild is middle grade dystopian fiction, which is something you very rarely see. This alone would have been enough to catch my interest, but it's also about rewilding, a passion of mine.

The basic set-up of the novel is that the dying world has been deliberately sabotaged by climate change activists, essentially. They've introduced a deadly disease carried by ticks that has made most of the world uninhabitable. The last remaining people are locked away in cities with dead zone moats, where anything wild and natural is ruthlessly eradicated.

This is a fascinating premise. What if the cure for the planet is the near extinction of the human race? What would become of the world without humans in it? And what would become of the humans shut away from nature?

Well the answers are just as fascinating. Most of the humans it seems readily accept this new way of life, and the story quite cleverly shows us how they are effectively indoctrinated and made to accept this as the new normal. Some of them just don't fit in though, they feel the need for the wild deep inside them. This is where Juniper and Bear, our main characters, come in.

I really, really like Juniper and Bear. They are brave and scared, uncertain and ready to take risks. The love and affection they have for each other is just brilliant. Their journey together into the unknown wild is inspiring and beautiful. There's peril and hardship and there's acceptance and belonging.

I love the use of Ennerdale in Cumbria as the "promised land" they're journeying to. Ennerdale is the site of a real world rewilding project.

Where The World Turns Wild is brimming with love and affection for the natural world around us, and is a joy to read. It's a scary vision of a possible future, yet there is hope there too.

This is a heartachingly stunning, powerful and thought-provoking story set in a dystopian future where the majority of the human population has been forced to live like prisoners, trapped in Cities to avoid a deadly man-made disease capable of decimating humanity. This disease was released by a group known as the Rewilders, who sought to fight back against the terrible damage that humans were causing to the environment.

Outside the city, nature is given the opportunity to flourish unchecked and unhindered, growing wild whereas inside the City its re-generation is heavily controlled, and is failing, leading to hunger and anger, a combination that makes the leaders desperate …

Into this restrictive, threatening and controlling City, two innocent children - Juniper and Bear - are sent, children with a natural immunity to the disease, a trait which sees them facing great danger and which forces them to escape from the City and into the Wild, seeking the family who thought they were sending them to safety with their Grandmother in the City …

Juniper and Bear escape the City with the help of a friend, and find themselves crossing the perilous Buffer Zone outside its walls. So begins their long and desperate journey through the Wild in an attempt to be reunited with their parents … a journey which forces them to face their fears; which allows them to appreciate the beauty and terror in nature; which sees them being hunted; and, which leads to encounters with supportive friends and terrifying enemies surviving in the Wild. I don’t want to elaborate any more on their journey through the Wild as I don’t want to give spoilers, but I will say that it had the power to keep me utterly gripped page after wonderful page.

The story-telling and world-building is absolutely superb. I felt completely immersed and invested in this world; I was desperate to find out what happened next as I followed the action-packed plot; and, most of all, I adored Juniper and Bear …

These two children are beautifully and realistically portrayed, engendering strong feelings of sympathy in me and completely capturing my heart. Neither 13-year-old Juniper Green nor her 6-year-old brother Bear, are able to cope with the strictures of life in the City and their separation from nature. They feel ostracised and are painfully aware that they don’t fit in. The way they are treated by most of their peers is heart-breaking, but there is also a sense of hope in the depiction of their relationships with a few others. Bear and Juniper clearly love each other deeply and this bond gives them the strength to endure when they are frightened, uncertain and desperate. They look out for each other, both showing incredible courage, resourcefulness and determination in the face of incredible danger and risk.

The premise of this story is utterly fascinating, and rather terrifying. There is so much potential for discussion around the moral dilemma, and consequences, in the decision that was taken by the Rewilders to unleash a disease that was intended to save the environment from human destruction, but also had devastating outcomes for humanity. Of course, it also gives lots of opportunity to open up a discussion of what we can do now to respect, protect and nurture the environment.

This really is a must-read story: it is gripping, moving and so relevant with wonderfully drawn, sympathetic protagonists, and, a plot that completely enthralled me.

I loved this book! The plotline was compelling and intriguing. The main protagonist Juniper and her brother have been sent back from ’outside’ to live in a hermetically sealed environment after a global catastrophe which was set off by environmental activists who had planned to ’save’ and ’rewild’ the planet.
Sanctuary or prison?

I would recommend this book to readers aged 10 and above. There is reference to global devastation, and the book is set in the future. The children undertake a perilous journey to find their parents and encounter many gruesome sights and grim realisations. There is definite scope for a sequel and I would hope to see that, as the story is very well written with rounded characters, each with their own carefully defined strengths and flaws.
Thanks to #NetGalley and @Nicolapenfold for the opportunity to read this excellent book.

I was so pleased to be able to read this book. It has been gathering a lot of attention on twitter and I can attest to it being well deserved.

Nicola Penfold has created a world in which people are forced to live within city walls and without any nature growing around them. Ticks had been carrying a disease that wiped out entire towns and cities, so the government stepped in and created barriers, rules and consequences for being a nature lover.
Juniper and little brother Bear, even their names break the mold, are living with their grandmother. Their parents gave them up to her and then returned to living in the wild. It has always been a plan for Juniper and Bear to return to the wild to find their parents. They have been storing supplies, books and maps that will help them on this incredibly brave journey. All of this has to be hidden over fears of being sent to the institute. Their escape has been brought forward after Bear has his blood tested as both he and Juniper are immune to the disease carried by the ticks. Trouble is growing for the pair.
There are few who will help them but some firm friends and rebels working secretly provide the final pieces to the escape. Knowing they need to say final goodbyes to their home and only family they have really known, the night they leave is emotional and fraught with danger of getting caught,
Getting past the barrier between the city and the wild is manageable but the wild is full of wolves, ticks and a lynx. A heart pounding adventure with danger, struggles and learning to fend for themselves in a wild forest. It beautifully highlights so many of our environmental issues and worries over conservation.
Juniper and Bear are incredibly well thought and planned characters, their plight feels all too real and the hope of finding a home is something everyone will relate to. They work together, keep each other safe and prove that love, hope and a sense of doing the right thing will prevail.
I loved this story and look forward to seeing what Nicola does next!

I really liked portions of this book but others I really disliked. Juniper was a great character but I found the more the story continued the more irritating her brother Bear got. He was okay in small portions but having him keep complaining for large areas of a chapter was too much. I understandable believable for someone his ages but it really threw me out of the story and made me want to put it down so often. The writing and action was done well though and helped save the book for me.