“Tenkara Smart weaves a delightful coming of age story of struggle, survival, and happiness found in an imaginary world.” Book Review

“She Named Me Wolf is the first book in a series titled The Many Lives of Wolf and is based on the idea of past lives and reincarnation,” Tenkara says. “In this young adult novel, I introduce the reader to Wolf, a boy growing up in a small town in the Australian Capital Territory in the 1970’s. Wolf’s father is an unpredictable alcoholic, and though his father is physically abusive, I focus the story on how Wolf copes with the abuse by escaping into magical worlds and pulling on his own inner strength. Another main character in the book is Polly, the ghost of a Japanese girl who is like a sister to Wolf. She cares for him, teaches him, and even tries to protect him. However, because she is a ghost, Polly is physically powerless. Luckily for Wolf, his mother involves him with martial arts training early in his life, and this becomes a key factor in Wolf’s development and the choices he makes.”

Tenkara Smart got the idea for She Named Me Wolf from both her own personal beliefs and stories people have shared with her. Tenkara was deeply moved by how a young person can use their powerful imagination as well as martial arts to cope with the fear and instability that comes from having an abusive parent. Also, with a bachelor’s degree in English Literature and a minor in Creative Writing from San Diego State University, she finally found the story that inspired her enough to put it into words.

“I hope when people read She Named Me Wolf, they admire Wolf’s courage and inner strength and the idea that the world is more than it seems. In the end, Wolf shows us that we all have the power to carve our own path.”

Tenkara’s second book will be released in 2021. The second novel in the series, the story of Junsaku, a samurai warrior living in feudal Japan, is an adult contemporary novel that tells the story of another life of this one soul as it travels through many lifetimes, seeking out the light in the darkness.

She Named Me Wolf is available at Amazon.com

https://read.amazon.com.au/kp/embed?a...