Willows vs. Wolverines

by Alison Cherry

Izzy Cervantes and her best friend, Mackenzie, have spent summers together at Camp Sweetwater since they were eight. So when their parents decide to ship them off to Camp Foxtail instead, the girls find themselves completely out of their element — and worse yet, in different cabins!

Izzy feels like an outsider in Willow Lodge. But when she hears about the time-honored prank war between the Willows and the Wolverines, the rival boy cabin, she sees a chance to make her mark. Convinced the girls will never accept her as one of them unless she has roots at Camp Foxtail, she boasts that her older brother is the most respected prankster in the camp’s history and would be happy to help them win the war. In reality, Izzy doesn’t even have an older brother, but the Willows embrace her as their new secret weapon, and Mackenzie agrees to help her hatch a series of epic stunts.

As the hijinks escalate, so does Izzy’s popularity. But she becomes so focused on impressing her new friends that she starts neglecting Mackenzie, putting her friendship and her secret prank-master identity in serious jeopardy.

Can Izzy keep the truth under wraps and win her best friend back, or will she end up on the wrong side of her allies as well as her enemies?

Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Friendship, Fiction, Childrens, Contemporary, Summer

Unknown Binding

First published April 11, 2017

About the author

Alison grew up in Evanston, IL. She is a professional photographer and spent many years working as a lighting designer for theater, opera, and dance. Now she lives in Brooklyn and writes young adult novels full time. She is represented by the lovely and amazing Holly Root of Root Literary.

Reviews

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This might actually be my favorite book of the week. No, the month. No, the year! Willows vs. Wolverines was extraordinary. If anyone's reading this review and wondering if they should go get this book, DO IT. It's beyond excellent. It literally came out two days ago, but I was browsing the bookstore and just had to buy this one—and yes, I was worried it would be another classic, cliché "girl realizes the importance of friendship at a spectacular summer camp," but it completely blew me away.

One: how familiar it felt. The best-friend bond Izzy shared with Mackenzie, the way girls think and over-dramatize drama, the FEELING behind this book. It perfectly demonstrates the average summer days of an average girl—but in complete, vivid, wowing situations that just make it impossible to put the book down. I bought it today and finished it today. Alison Cherry totally gave an accurate description of how a story like this should be—tension. Drama. Lies. Ultimate (and I mean ULTIMATE) pranks. Friendship. Tears. Fun. Laughter. Joy. Humor. Happiness. Everything. It was a summer camp where Izzy just didn't fit in, and she hated it because it was basically the first summer ever when she didn't go to the Sweetwater. Izzy, separated from her BFF, had to cope with the unfamiliarities of the camp for a whole month. It's realistic and gorgeous. The way Izzy felt when bad things happened to her, when she was pressured into decisions, when she had to fight her way to the top of the popularity list even if it meant not paying as much attention as she should to her BFF Mackenzie? Perfect. All of it, perfect.

Two: the humor. Oh, the humor. I was smiling, giggling, and laughing the whole time. The prank war was the most epic part of the book—my favorite was definitely the Sea Witch prank, where they spooked the entire camp and sent people (like Stuart) screaming. The competitions Izzy held with the boy cabin, the Wolverines, were hilarious. The pranks were hilarious. The spaghetti scene? I was laughing so hard. This book made my day. I wonder how Alison Cherry managed to come up with all of this! She added just the right amount of tension and climax to every prank—the best part was when she wouldn't explain the prank until it happened, letting us enjoy the moment as if we were living it.

Three: the characters. Izzy was not a Mary-Sue, not in the least. She made decisions that were realistic, even when they were bad. For example, she chose the normal way out of dealing with a problem: pretending the person who caused the problem didn't exist in order for herself to have fun. Her personality was perfectly crafted for the story. Her character arc was super powerful. Her bestie, Mackenzie, had a stunning character arc too. The "mean girls" that show up in practically every book—Lexi, Ava, and Roo—all had their ups and downs. They weren't straight out evil just because they liked to be; they had their reasons and their faults, their insecurities and their sweet moments. No one here is outright good or evil—even the super-warm cabin counselor in Izzy's group had her bad moments too. This added to the overall realism of the story. I bet it was hard making the characters do wrong things, but no one is perfect, and this story shows that. Also, the part about girls being super weird (in the opinion of boys)? Super true and funny. For some reason, girls are just so much more . . . complicated. Josh, one of the boys in the Wolverine cabin, was the perfect mix of competitive, daredevil, and nice.

Four: the plot. The book didn't seem long to me at all. Every moment led up to another step in the character arc, or another step in the plot, so everything wrapped up nicely and neatly together. The length was perfect. It was long enough to describe and help you experience the month of summer camp the main character went through, but not boringly banal.

And believe me, I'm not one to throw these kinds of praises around lightly. Willows and Wolverines was a fantastic read, the descriptions perfect and explosive and just so, SO humorous. I don't know if Alison Cherry will write a sequel since this book could be a great and powerful standalone, but if she does, I'm definitely going to buy it. I'm so glad I picked this book up. Five out of five stars! Read this book right now!!!

[Gabriella Crivilare · Rating 5 out of 5]

What's more wild than the annual prank war between two cabins? It's the story first-time Foxtail camper Izzy Cervantes tells her cabinmates to convince her to lead the prank war--that her brother Tomas is a legendary Wolverine prankster. Soon she and her best friend Mackenzie--who is in a different cabin than her for the first time ever--are leading the charge. And everything is working out perfectly until Izzy starts to choose hanging out with popular Willows while still expecting Mackenzie to help her cook up pranks. What follows finds Izzy coming to terms with the fact that friendships don't always have to be all-or-nothing, and that even if apologizing doesn't mean things going back to exactly the way they were, that's okay, among other great lessons that do not for a second feel like lessons. I loved the few hours I spent at Camp Foxtail, and it desperately made me wish I'd had a summer experience just like it.

[Stephanie Faris · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Willows vs. Wolverines, pranks are the name of the game. But Izzy's desire to fit in has her telling a bit of a fib about her brother. When her cabinmates won't take her prank suggestions seriously, she tells them that her brother is the king of pranks, having earned a reputation as a legend. The pranks were off-the-hook fun in this one, but there's also an underlying message about the cost of popularity and the importance of honoring real friendships.

[Ally]

Cherry perfectly captures that in between childhood and teenager feeling. She brought memories flooding back of how that felt. Also: prank wars, so this one's obviously hilarious.

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, I laughed a bunch, so that's always a plus. Super cute story and a mostly tidy ending - Izzy actually matures in her friendships a bit, in a difficult and real way.

[Scott Hensley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well done. Wonderfully written.

[Martina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need more middle grade books in my summer!

[Shelleyc · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book captures the essence of a sleep-over summer camp experience for teens. Two of the cabins have a historic "prank war" that continues throughout the book. The main character experiences friendship issues that are all too real for girls of this age. The story line that attracted the most conversation between me and my daughter was the relationship the female cabin counselor, Val, of the Willow cabin had with the main character, Izzy. My daughter was slightly upset that Val mislead Izzy by giving her special treatment. We talked alot about the responsibilities an adult leader of children needs to adhere to, and what happens when boundaries are blurred. The consequence in this story is just hurt feelings, but sometimes it can be a greater loss. I was grateful to have the opportunity to discuss this theme in life. But overall, the book brought several laughs.

[Isabella · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was cute. I think it was a nice friendship story. From my experiences, I have found a love for camp. Pranking, not really my thing. But I think the book had a great outline and set up, and the storyline went somewhere, unlike other books that I’ve read. This book really reminds me of the book 11 before 12 (search it up if you haven’t read it). The book had a bit of comedy, tons of friendship, and a lot of fun. I definitely think that it was just a simple story, just something to read for fun, which is why I gave it four stars. But I recommend you read it if you haven’t.

[Motunrayo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an AMAXING book which I love so much. But I was kind of expecting because this is by my favorite author, Alison Cherry! She has also wrote my favorite book. I feel bad for Makenzie at sometimes and also bad for her because of whet happens to their relationship😢 But I love it!!

[Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this novel with the middle school girl’s book club I host & it was their favorite of the summer! So many silly shenanigans and pranks all while juggling trying to adapt to a new camp with new friends.

[Makenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love it! The prank war is so funny. I love how there are so many different twists! Like when all of the Wolverines and all of the Willows ganged up together.

[Mary Honda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet and fun!

[maya venice · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of my favorite mix books

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I borrowed The Classy Crooks Club from the library several months ago, I was so pleasantly surprised by how good it was that when I learned of Willows vs. Wolverines I added it to my to-read shelf right away, expecting it to be similarly well-written. Unfortunately, while this book is a solid tween tale of summer camp pranks, it just wasn't quite as distinctive as The Classy Crooks Club, and I found my mind wandering as I was reading. I did like Izzy as a main character, and I could sympathize with Mackenzie's feelings, both about being separated from her best friend against her will at the start of camp, and about eventually wanting to branch out and make new friends. I just found the story predictable and lacking in any real surprises, and, after the introduction of a ouija board, I realized it wouldn't ever be appropriate for my Catholic kids anyway. (Though, compared with last summer's cringe-worthy Camp Rolling Hills, this one was the picture of morality.)

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Willows vs. Wolverines is a solid MG summer camp story.

What I didn't like:
-The story seems a little long for its intended audience, and the pacing is a bit slow in parts
-There's a LOT of middle-school-age drama and overreactions
-Izzy is sometimes an obnoxious narrator, and she is kind of mean to her best friend Mackenzie without fully realizing it
-A lot of the pranks--and the sandwich-making part--are ridiculously over-the-top

What I liked:
-The handling of Izzy's Latina identity/culture
-Izzy's letters home at the end of some chapters
-The fun, well-done summer camp setting--and what it's like to be a seasoned camper at an unfamiliar camp: the basic gist is the same, but little differences surprise you
-A fairly large but well-developed cast of characters that avoid stereotypes: the bossy "mean girl" has her insecurities, her followers discover how to lead and make choices for their own, the homesick crying girl has an interest in skulls, the rowdy and scheming boy is a great listener and friend, et cetera
-Good boy-girl and girl-girl friendships
-Mackenzie's character arc as she comes out of her shell and learns to stand on her own--and her dairy allergy

[Emma Andje · Rating 4 out of 5]

My tween self would have absolutely loved this and begged to try camp just one more time after reading this. Seeing as my camp experiences were less than subpar, it gives me hope that other kids may have an experience like the one in this book and that it could give ease to others who are anxious about attending camp for the first time.

I do wish we found out why the main character’s parents decided to send her to a different camp other than a falling out with the director of the camp she grew up at.

But, overall, this is a cute book that is perfect for the upper elementary student in your life who may be going to camp in the near future.

[Sandeera · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is officially the BEST. BOOK. EVER!! first off i loved how familiar i felt with Izzy and Mackenzie. They made choices, that we would make if we were in that situation. I loved how Izzy and Mackenzie's friendship was, and how even after it failed, they managed to hold it together by forgiveness, and how Izzy made sandwiches for her to make her happy, it was beautiful. The competition between Josh and Izzy-well let's just say i was rooting Izzy. And the pranks? They had me guffawing and rereading, especially the witch one. Officially my favourite book in 2020!

[Lisa]

I think if I were a kid I probably would have gotten a big kick out of this one. Camp . . . a prank war . . . what's not to like? As an adult, though, I was having trouble staying engaged. One thing I'll say, I really appreciated the portrayal of Izzy's idolization and adoration of her counselor, Val. Speaking as a former camper, it was spot-on!

[Isabella]

This is probably one of my favorite books and this author is really good. It's relatable and just overall good.