Member Review

So this is a prequel story to the Last Wild Trilogy. I had read The Last Wild, The Dark Wild and The Wild Beyond, and it felt good to return to the Wild world once again. I think you would enjoy this book even if you haven’t read the trilogy. It is written from the animals’ point of view and in particular, that of Little Hare. He lives as part of the Dandelion Hill Wild, made up of both wild and farm animals. The native animals and seasonal visitors have noticed changes in the world around them, blazing summers, rising seas, late snows in spring and the Wild is not as secure as it once was. The head of their Wildness, a Great Bull, has dreamt a prophecy; of a Mooncalf and the end of the world and it is Little Hare, like Frodo in Lord of the Rings, who must be the reluctant hero. Also, like Frodo, he has help along the way in the form of a harvest mouse, whose songs and dances are the stuff of legend (or they very soon will be I’m sure).
The setting of Dandelion Hill is beautifully described and evokes the countryside in way that is so real, it transports you back to your own personal, favourite countryside, mine being the Wiltshire of my childhood. There is a strong theme of nature conservation and climate change, the effect that humans are having on the world and the young waxwing is the voice that speaks to us all to say “What are YOU going to do about it?”
Piers Torday is a master story-teller and world builder, who must have a GSOH because there are lovely puns and funny touches throughout the novel (beautiful robin song anyone?) I loved the introduction to the time and tongue of the animals (which is the language the book uses) and the names and personalities of the characters. The pages themselves are decorated with natural silhouettes which add to the appeal of this book, with lots of little hares and other animals interspersed. I am looking forward to sharing this story at school with our Key Stage 2 children. I think they will really enjoy it as much as I did.