The Stolen Spear

by Saviour Pirotta, Davide Ortu (Illustrator)

'Weakness of any kind is frowned upon... Only bravery is admired. I pray to the spirits every day to make me brave.' --- Wolf struggles to fit into his village. He s not strong like his brother or a natural leader like his father. Every day he just tries to keep his head down. That is until a sacred spear head is stolen. Wolf is cast out, seen as the reason for its disappearance. With no one but his trusty dog, Shadow, to join him, Wolf vows to find the stolen spear and restore his honour. But Wolf has never left the village before and the world beyond the sea is a complete unknown... where will this journey take him and what secrets will he uncover? Join Wolf on his hunt for the spear, as he journeys from the village now known as Skara Brae to a wider, ancient world on the cusp of a new age. Publisher territorial rights

Genres: Childrens

136 pages, Paperback

Published August 28, 2019

About the author

Saviour Pirotta is the award-winning author of over one hundred fiction and nonfiction books for children. His works have been translated into 28 languages. Originally from Malta, he now lives in England.

Reviews

[Silent Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: The publisher (Maverick) contacted and provided me with book two to book four for this review, but all opinions stated are my own honest thoughts.

Wolfsong is a complete series of four books, published by Maverick. They have been meticulously illustrated by Davide Ortu, with a beautiful art style that is consistent with both the descriptions from the text and with previous character portrayals. Physically, the copies feel very durable (so, for instance, should be able to withstand being tumbled around in a school bag), have interesting covers, a large font and good quality pages of a suitable thickness for the target audience.

I have been careful to be very selective about what I have written as I don’t want to spoil these wonderful books for readers!

Summary:

In The Stolen Spear, we meet Wolf, son of Bear, and his loyal companion, Shadow the dog. He is a sensitive boy and the youngest in his family, but not well-liked by those of his own age in the village. One day, after a lamb is carried off by a predator when Wolf fell asleep, he tries to make amends by collecting auk eggs from the cliffside for his family…unfortunately, he is not the most observant and becomes trapped by the rising tide. Luckily, an adventuring stranger, Crow, finds him and helps him to safety. He befriends her and takes her to his home, but shortly after her departure a sacred Spear of his village is found to be stolen from the burial mound containing the corpse of an ancient Shaman. With the villagers already distrustful of strangers, and many of the clues point to Crow as the culprit. Now practically ostracised from his community, Wolf and Shadow set out on an adventure of their own to Seal Island, where he hopes to confront Crow and return the spear to its rightful place. But Wolf will learn that truth can be easily distorted.

The Specifics of the Edition:
I read the standard paperback edition, but it is also available in digital and audio form.

My Thoughts:

This was such a wonderful introduction into a Neolithic-inspired, fantastical saga! It was fast paced and engaging, proving Wolf to be a meaningful protagonist and the expanding world to hold much promise for future books. The first-person perspective draws in the reader, allowing a better understanding of Wolf’s motivations. As a character, I think many children will be able to identify with him, so I will be interested to see how he progresses from here. In only a few chapters he has already shown interesting character development and changing dynamics with others. I would like to see more interactions with his brother, father and his bully, Rain, in the later books.

The themes of friendship and social rejection .... please find the rest of my series review here: https://thesilentreviewerblog.wordpre...

[beckys_book_blog · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an exciting Stone Age (on the cusp of the Bronze age) adventure series which is perfect for young children who are starting to learn about this period at school (recommended age range is 6-11 years)
The book is set around the Orkney Islands in Scotland. In the first story the young boy Wolf sets off with his wolf Shadow on a journey to find a stolen spear. He has never left his village before and uncovers many secrets along the way.
My daughter has really enjoyed listening to these stories at bedtime. It really brings this period of history to life and we have learnt a lot about this time without even realising! There are black and white illustrations throughout the books which help to capture the excitement of the story too.
A great series of adventure, friendship and bravery in a brilliantly atmospheric time period.

[Holly Dawson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this to my class. Decent story and good links to the Neolithic period for the teaching of the Stone Age - Iron Age. It was easy to relate to the characters and we liked the fact that they had realistic Stone Age names.🦣 🏹

Much more child-friendly and accessible than the boy with the bronze axe which I found really heavy going for 7-8 year olds. My class have really enjoyed this story and are always asking for ‘one more chapter’.

[Layla · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun story, perfect for children aged 7-9 or younger if they read well... Based on life in prehistoric Skara Brea this book is a great adventure with engaging illustrations throughout, that will help children understand life in a very different time from our own through the eyes of the relatable protagonist, a boy called Wolf.

[Lauren Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun adventure with lots of action. Love the historical references that will link nicely to learning with the children in our Stone Age topic. The characters are enjoyable, although not overly developed. It could have been taken deeper, into a more detailed story. However, it does work as a short and simple adventure from the past.

[Reuben Chute · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked this book a bit it was ok I liked the part where he is trapped in the water on the edge of the cliffs.

[Amy Rowell · Rating 4 out of 5]

My class will loveeeee this as we've been learning about Skara Brae! Definitely using as a whole class read.

[Mollie R0se · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book for lower KS2 for learning about the stone age in particular the neolithic period. My class picked up so much knowledge from the story.