Never Cry Wolf (1963) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit see section history

Characters/People edit see section history

• Farley Mowat: Author and conservationist was sent as a government employee to study the wolves around Nueltin Lake to determine if they were the cause of the decline of the caribou there.
• Mike and Ootek: Eskimos that provide assistance, OOtek more than Mike, to Farley and teach him things about wolves that 'white' man wouldn't believe.
• George, Angeline, Albert: Adult wolves that Farley studied. They proved to be the opposite of what Farley expected. Close family bonds and emotions, all took equal part in caring for the pups, the author came to generally respect and care about these wolves.
• Kooa: One of Mike's Husky females, who mates with Albert while in heat under Mowat's observation.

Quotes edit see section history

• “I had made my decision that from this hour onward, I would go open-mineded into the lupine world and learn to see and know the wolves, not for what they were supposed to be, but for what they actually were.”

  Farley Mowat

• “Whenever and wherever men have engaged in the mindless slaughter of animals (including other men), they have often attempted to jusify their acts by attributing the most vicious or revolting qualities to those they would destroy; and the less reason there is for the slaughter, the greater the campaign of vilification.”

  Farley Mowat

• “He was lying down, evidently resting after his mournful singsong, and his nose was about six feet from mine. We stared at one another in silence. I do not know what went on in is massive skull, but my head was full of the most disturbing thoughts. I was peering straight into the amber gaze of a fully grown arctic wolf.”

  Farley Mowat

Setting & Locations edit see section history

• Ottawa
• Keewatin
• Wolf House Bay
• Churchill

First Sentence edit see section history

Table of Contents edit see section history

Series & Lists edit see section history

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Farley Mowat (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: QL0795.W8 M6 1963
• Dewey: 599.773

Notes for Parents edit see section history

This book is appropriate for children 9-12.

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Children's Books › Authors & Illustrators, A-Z › ( M ) › Mowat, Farley
• Books › Science › Biological Sciences › Animals › Wildlife
• Books › Outdoors & Nature › Reference
• Books › Science › Behavioral Sciences
• Books › Health, Mind & Body › Psychology & Counseling
• Books › Outdoors & Nature › Nature Writing
• Books › Outdoors & Nature › Fauna

Links to Supplemental Material edit see section history

• Wikipedia article: Never Cry Wolf is a book by Canadian author Farley Mowat, first published in 1963 by McClelland and Stewart. It was adapted into a film of the same name in 1983. It has been credited for dramatically changing the public image of the wolf to a more positive one. It is presented as a first-person narrative of Mowat's research into the nature of the Arctic Wolf.
• e-Notes Book Review: Never Cry Wolf is a short work (160 pages) that incorporates the truth about wolf behavior as Mowat interpreted it in his assignment to investigate “wolf-caribou-predator-prey relationships.” He himself called it a “potboiler,” and the Holt, Rinehart and Winston edition is marketed as juvenile literature complete with pedagogical materials. His critics sneered at the depiction of wolves as fanciful, but whatever the book's merit as a study of wolves, it sold more than 300,000 copies and established Mowat's reputation as a spokesman not only for wolves but also for nature in general.
• The Roaming Naturalist Book Review: Rarely does a book skyrocket into my top 5 favorites within the first 20 pages or so, but Never Cry Wolf certainly did. Farley Mowat is a Canadian-born author of several tomes, and Never Cry Wolf was written based on his purported experiences as a biologist for the Canadian government. In the late 1940s, Mowat was sent into the Arctic wilderness to research the relationship between wolves and caribou, against claims that wolves were decimating caribou populations.

Movie Connections edit see section history

• Never Cry Wolf (1983) (IMDb): Starring Charles Martin Smith

More Books Like This edit see section history