Wildings

by Eleanor Glewwe

A captivating fantasy about the bond between twins, and the power of children to stand up for what's right.

Rivka is one of the magical elite and the daughter of an important ambassador. But she harbors a deep She once had a twin brother, Arik. When Arik failed to develop his own magical abilities, the government declared him a wilding, removed him from his home, placed him with non-magical adoptive parents, and forbade him any contact with his birth family. Now it is as if he never existed at all.

But Rivka refuses to forget her twin brother. Even though she knows she could lose everything—her father, her friends, even her freedom—she sets out to find Arik. She has nothing to go on except her still-new magical powers and her love for her brother. Can that possibly be enough to bring them together again, when all of society believes they belong apart?

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Fiction

336 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2016

About the author

Eleanor Glewwe was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in Maryland and Minnesota, with a brief interlude in Paris. She attended Swarthmore College, where she majored in Linguistics and Languages and worked in the music library. After graduating, she spent a year at an interfaith advocacy organization, working for social justice at the Minnesota legislature. She then spent six years in Los Angeles earning her Ph.D. in linguistics. In addition to being a writer, Eleanor is a musician and a folk dancer. She currently lives in Iowa, where she teaches linguistics at Grinnell College. Her debut novel SPARKERS, a middle grade fantasy, was published by Viking in 2014, and its companion WILDINGS came out in November 2016.

Reviews

[Short Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went on a rollercoaster of emotions reading this. I feel everything the heroine Rivka felt, and to me that shows how convincing the author is at protraying her characters.

Rivka is a magician. Her twin brother, Arik, is not. He has been declared a Wilding, a non magical person in a family pf magicians, and was sent away to live with his new parents, who were also non magical.
I should also mention: non magical children become part of the Halan people, who are people with no magic, and are immediately taken from their magical families, and are forced to live with a Halani adoptive family selected by the government.

Arik was taken from his family at age 10, and despite Rivka's pleas, she was told that she would never see her twin brother ever again. In fact, he was no longer her brother, no longer a member of their family.

But the twins still meet up in secret. They are relieved to see each other, until they were caught by the police.
The two were forcibly separated after their father came to the station and said, coldly, that Arik was a Halan and therefore no longer his son.
Arik was sent to a different country, to a different Halani family, and Rivka only found out after her mother had told her.

Her mother died not longer after she told this important piece of info, and four years pass before Rivka's father decided to become an ambassador for thesame country his ex-son is now living in. <- lol, sorry writing the word 'ex-son' is hilarious. I still can't believe this guy disowned his own child!

Anyway, Rivka vows to find her brother, and she does, but their reunion wasn't what she thought. After the initial love and excitement the first time they re-meet, Rivka realizes how different life can become after four years.

Even though Arik was the one who outcasted, it seemed as though Rivka was the one who lost everything - her brother had changed and was happy with his new family and now lived a different life from her. Her father as an ambassador was still as distant as ever, and she had barely any friends at school.

I could relate to Rivka's feelings of being left out many times in her brother's new family, and I even found myself wishing Elisha could go back to being Arik, just to make Rivka happy.

I couldn't understand how easy it was for Rivka's father to give up and disown his son just because he didn't have magic. I know it was considered the normal thing to do in their world, but did this father not feel any remorse?

I did feel like parts of the book was rushed, especially the ending, but overall it was excellent and one of my favourites of 2016.

[Yapha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This companion volume to Sparkers takes place four years later. Rivka and her twin brother Arik were separated at the age of 10 because she had magic and he didn't. Arik was placed with a Halan (non-magical) family, and Rivka was told to forget he ever existed. When they continued to meet, Arik was placed with a different family and further removed by being sent to the neighboring city-state of Ashara. When their father is appointed to Ashara, Rivka begs to be brought along. All she wants is to be reunited with her brother, but what she ends up doing could change the laws for all families like hers. A brilliant look at systematic racism in an engaging fantasy novel. It would help to read Sparkers first. Highly recommended for grades 4 & up.

[Viola Sung · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did not finish this book.

It was interesting at the beginning but the plot was fairly dull, highlighting only the rift between Kaisirs and Halans without many additional delights. Rivka is a mundane character, at times unlikable to me even. The rest of the characters also appeared flat.

The combination of music and magic was intruiging and new, but unfortunately the writing couldn't allow me to be entranced by this other world that the author created.

Sadly, I could not enjoy nor complete this read.

[G. Ludlow · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book very thought provoking. An interesting world is created where the fact of whether you have magic or not, puts you in the social class for your whole life and every activity within it.

As the book wends its way through the different cultures that prevail we see more and more of the inequalities that result from the division. We watch families torn apart and we watch efforts of some courageous few to reunite with loved ones.

Very well worth reading. I'm looking forward to reading Sparkers which is another book set in this same world.

[Isabelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really reminded me of Ordinary Magic, which is one of my favorite books. Part of this book is about class divide with the main character being kasir, which is the upper class, and her brother is halani, the lower class, because he has no magic. Although the halani have no magic they do have a "sixth sense", they have uncanny intuition. Rivka, the main character, was separated at age ten from her brother, Arik, because he had no magic. I really enjoyed reading this book.

[Diana Gagliardi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Same world as Sparkers, just 4 years later and we have another 14 yo from a neighboring country.

I find this world fascinating with its commentary on race and society that uses magic to make its points. I would very much like to see how this all continues.

Enjoy!

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this book, you learn what happened to Marah and Azariah after they revealed the evil Council's plan to annihilate all Sparkers from Ashara. But it's revealed tangentially to another, new story that examines, again, the ongoing effects of prejudice, racism and segregation of magical and non-magical persons.

The new character is Rivka, who grows up a stifled child in the city of Atsan, which practices magical music making. She plays the cello and at the age of 12 is torn from her twin brother, Arik, when it's discovered he can't make magic with his violin and her father disowns the boy. Rivka breaks the law to see her brother under a bridge (once!) and her father forbids her to ever mention him again. Her mother wastes away of grief and dies, but imparts one last, vital piece of information: Arik is living with an adoptive family in Ashara!

When her father is appointed Ambassador to Ashara and they must move to the city, Rivka bides her time, showing none of her excitement and enthusiasm. She wanders the streets after school, looking for Arik. At the same time, she gets sucked into the petty politics of the girls at the private school, Firem, and meets and befriends Caleb, Marah's little brother who is also deaf.

Through Marah, Rivka begins tutoring a girl, Samira, in the cello and shows her some rudimentary music magic. Samira has been ordered to leave her non-magical family and live with a new family, but Marah has spoken up for her in the new Council asking she be allowed to stay with her birth family.

In the power vacuum created after the old Council collapsed, a new shadowy group called The Society has risen, and it single handedly enforces the racist beliefs of old. The Society kidnaps Samira and threatens to kill her, if Marah doesn't drop her petition to allow the girl to stay with her birth family. The race in on to rescue her.

Together, the kids -- magical and non-magical -- stage a coup of sorts, getting the new Council members to rescind a centuries-old law that forces magical and non-magical children to be segregated, even torn from their families.

Lots of tears at the end. Loved these two gems of stories, and all the musical -- cello, violin -- references are spot on!

Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: http://amb.mystrikingly.com/

[Gale Keller · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this one with my little sister and neither of us enjoyed it. It started out with a great premise. The first few chapters in which Rivka describes her traumatic separation from Arik were very emotional and showed a lot of promise. That was the only time the book managed to be interesting.

The main issue with this book is that *nothing happens.* Flat characters stand around having the same conversation over and over about how messed up the world is. The villains introduced at the start of the story don't appear until the very end. If the characters have to do something risky and dangerous, they do it in the most mundane way possible and nothing goes wrong. There are no stakes, no subversions, no reason to be invested in the characters. Even the magic aspect (which had the potential to be interesting) plays a miniscule role in the plot, and characters only use it 4-5 times *in total.*

And the worst part about it? SPOILER: Rivka finds Arik in the middle of the book, and for the next several chapters, there is NO conflict driving the story. You'd think that after she finds her brother (which was her only character motivation for the first half of the book) the story would introduce a new conflict to keep things interesting, right? *Wrong.* So for the next few chapters, the story has no reason to continue until Samira gets kidnapped. Those are some of the most mind-numblingly boring chapters I've ever read in my life.

The only saving grace of the story is that it's not infuriatingly bad. The characters aren't stupid; they're just boring. And at least the message of not separating people because of arbitrary traits is nice (even if it is reiterated 8,000 times throughout the book.)

In conclusion, there is no reason for you to read this book. It will only waste your time.

[Xylene Qien · Rating 5 out of 5]

A juvenile fiction that has profound story, characters, world building, and values? Ohmygod, this exists!

I love that there is no perfect ending. And that the author didnt sugar-coat anything. And that the protagonist has complicated motives like us, and in the end she acknowledged the worse and harships that will come, before holding on to the dreams she had been fighting so hard for.

Also, i never read sparkers, but this book doesn't allude too much to that story. And that the characters from the previous book didnt over shine the characters we have now.

The music-magic is kinda ridiculous, when put out of context. It is interesting and in its way, creative to incorporate music to magic, as in reality, music has played a magical role in our lives. But i guess it's also very fantasy-surreal and less seen of music-magic, that it looks very anime. I guess this story could make a very cool animation. DISNEY WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING?

Hilah, i feel is the underdeveloped and under appreciated character. I like that Rivka acknowledged that she don't deserve a friend like her, but their friendship isn't very convincing to me. Hilah accepted Rivka too fast, even when she had enough of Rivka. It also makes Hilah more childish compared to Rivka, or Arik, or Caleb.

But i still love this gem i found. It's a very well written story with moving characters and world building.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. The world is interesting and the characters are relatable and well developed. However, there are some things missing that I kept hoping would reveal themselves and never did: Why exactly are these groups of people segregated? Was there some historic even that separated them? Was there a conflict that pitted them against each other? What determined who was to be in control? How is it the magical people are in control but both groups seemed to be represented in the Senate. As well, I didn't think it was clear enough exactly what the importance magic is to the society. There is some reference to being able to build things, but there were no examples of how magic is used to build the society. We know some people have magic and others don't, but it is never explained why this really matters in terms of contribution to society. The non-magic people have an "intuition" ability, but that is not developed and feels like it's just used as a device to move the story at a dramatic moment. The reasons given for separating families is because of how it would make the children feel to be raised in a different kind of family. This felt like a week reason and left me wanting more.

[Misti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twins Rivka and Arik grew up expecting to be together throughout their childhood, but when tested for magic at the age of 10, Arik proves to be a non-magical "wilding" who is then removed from their family and adopted by a non-magical family, the common practice in their country. Rivka and Arik, determined to remain close, flout the law and arrange to meet -- but when they are caught, Arik is sent to a different city-state. Years later, when Rivka's father is appointed ambassador to that same city-state, she pleads to travel with him, in hopes of finding Arik again. But how can she locate him, when she doesn't know the names of his adoptive parents, or even the name that he goes under now? She can't do it alone -- but who can she trust?

I really enjoyed this book, which had been on my TBR list for several years. Rivka and her friends get involved in political action to oppose the Family Laws that separate siblings, which I think would resonate with young readers in today's climate.

[Gabry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, this book was totally worth the wait. Which was months by the way, but it did get me to read Sparkers, the stand alone novel before it. So I do recommend reading that book first it will help as the main characters of Sparkers and some minor are referenced to or acting in this book. I really don't want to go into too much detail on the actual storyline ( if you want that read the excerpt at the top of the page) but this story touchs on complex situations and emotions involved with adopted/blended families and siblings in general. All of this is from the standpoint of a distant past with magic sealing up the seams.

[Melinda Brasher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! The writing is good, the premise sad and interesting and twistedly relevant, the setting a fun and creative mix of recent past and other world. The main characters aren't ridiculously good at everything, but they work and struggle and grow and accomplish great things. The themes of prejudice, segregation, and social change are important. The ending is satisfying. And my favorite part [SEMI-SPOILER] is that they fight for social change without violence. It's awesome! [END SPOILER]

I'm now going to read Sparkers and anything else Eleanor Glewwe writes. Highly recommended for kids and adults alike.

[Fudgy · Rating 3 out of 5]

come to think of it this felt hollow to me and i expected more.
the characters fell flat and tho the concept was pretty good i couldn't find the world building developed to it's full potential and there was barely and magic at all.
also this was quite predictable but it was fast paced so i am rounding it to 3 stars.
the way this dealt with prejudice and racism was actually better than everything but i do believe so many parts were rushed and unnecessary.

[Johanna King · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was a really good book with well thought out world building. The book does a great job of setting the scene for divisions in society and how people are products of environment but also of their own experiences. Definitely keeps you in suspense for the ultimate happy ending but delivers the one the story was meant to have instead.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Appropriate for: age 11+

I liked this book. I was drawn in my the talk of magic but it really turned out to be a racial/social issues book. The magic wasn't really explored in depth but I still enjoyed this book.

[Béatrice · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Sebastien · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's about music and magic, that s all I can tell you. 😉

[Nikole (dreamingofreadingx) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was actually really good. I think Wildings deserves way more hype. The magic system was really unique. Using instruments to create magic would be insanely cool. I like how this book got pretty dark and into the nitty gritty of things. Even though this is labeled as a middle grade on Goodreads. I’d almost say it reads a bit more like young adult. Other than the fact that our main character is only 14. I would highly recommend checking this out if the premise sounds interesting to you. Despite the lack of ratings.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rifka is excited to be going with her father, who is an ambassador to the neighboring country of Ashara. She wants to go there because that’s where her twin brother Arik lives. She has magic (kasir) and her twin doesn’t (halan.) In their society, Kasiri and Halani are rigidly kept apart. As well as magic, kasiri have more money, status and privilege. That’s there in the text when Rifka describes the opulent ambassador’s residence and compares that to the slums where her new friends live. This was diverting, but why does everyone have a Jewish/ Israeli name without the characters ever being described as Jewish?. “So what makes kasiri and halani different, if not magic?” (188) Caleb, Rifka’s new friend writes. I borrowed this from my local library.

[sumayyah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an amazing book! The music, the characters, the justice! Rivka is a very stubborn girl, a jealous one too. I didn't like it when she got jealous at little things but other than that, she had great character. Arik, her long-lost brother, also has great character. Now, the music, the author did an amazing job describing the melodies through a book, what a challenge that must have been. I also loved the justice the main characters try giving Halani and Kasiri, no one should be judged because of what they do or don't have. It's disgusting and deplorable. It is a very controversial topic, but I think the author did it justice. The thing I disliked about this book though, is that it was a little slow-paced. It made me get a little bored reading through it, but just when it starts to get slow, it picks up immediately with surprising happenings. All in all, I recommend this book, but not for a light read.

[Janet Riegel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the follow-up to Sparkers! The concept of the Kashirs and Halani is so intriguing! It would be interesting for someone to see how the life in this world is very similar to issues that existed in nazi Germany! Are you going to do another book, possibly a followup to Wildings? I hope so!

[Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the Wildings there were two twins who fought to be together again. This book kept me up all night as I read it. I would recommend this book to Fantasy readers the most but if you want to read it, give the book a try!

[Nicole Cavanagh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rivka has a twin brother named Arik. When the two take a magic test, only Rivka passes and Arik has to go to a halani family. When her father is appointed ambassador of Astan, she might finally be able to find him, if she does, how far would she go? Can she help all split up siblings?

[Alana Martinez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really excellent makes you think about our world's parallels in exclusion and prejudice.

[Katherine Petzold · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book

[Tracie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twins, one magical and one not, are separated for life based on family laws in their country, and this is the story of their reuniting and fighting to end the cruel practice.

[Na'Shyiah]

I didn't really like this book because it didn't have much detail,and didn't make any sense to me

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the characters & the relationship of the twins determined to change the laws to have a relationship.