Wolfboy Is Scared

May 15, 2023
In this follow-up to Wolfboy (2021), an innovative art technique jazzes up a familiar narrative. After a long night of playing, Wolfboy and his rabbit friends head home. They hope to arrive before moonset, so Wolfboy advises that they use a shortcut "through the lair of the GRUMBLE MONSTER." As the title suggests, Wolfboy is the one scared by this plan, not the rabbits. Harkness uses perspective to make Wolfboy and the rabbits seem very small as they enter the forest. Wolfboy thinks he sees the monster lurking behind trees, but the rabbits reassure him otherwise (those "claws" are just branches, and that "tail" is just a bramble vine). Readers, however, will notice parts of the monster's large body in the foregrounds of the illustrations, unseen by the characters. The pacing recalls Julia Danielson and Axel Scheffler's The Gruffalo, as the monster is revealed bit by bit, and when Wolfboy and the rabbits finally meet him, he's not so scary after all. This twist brings to mind stories like Rachel Bright's Love Monster (2012) or even Andrew Clement and Yoshi's Big Al (1991), but the distinctive artwork sets Harkness' picture book apart. The Claymation-like illustrations, which Harkness explains in a note he created using a virtual-reality headset, sculpting each page "in much the same way I would sculpt with real clay," have a 3-D effect, like stills from stop-motion animation. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Sure to soothe anyone who's ever fretted about what's out there in the dark. (Picture book. 3-6)

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December 22, 2023
Preschool-Grade 2 To see the moonset on time, Wolfboy and his rabbit friends decide to take a shortcut through the lair of the Grumble Monster. Although Wolfboy claims he isn't scared, he can't help but mistake the mossy tree roots for moldy monster toes and a bramble vine for a spiky monster tail, until--YIKES! It is the Grumble Monster, tall as the forest! It leans down, opens its mouth . . . and asks politely for moonberries for its grumbling tum, which Wolfboy and the rabbits happily share. As with its predecessor, Wolfboy (2021), Harkness' artistry is impeccable. Every page is a masterpiece of multidimensional detail. The artwork is mesmerizingly original, having been meticulously formed within a virtual reality workspace and using sculpture with imported texture and digital lighting and colorization. The story is cute with a fun twist that is both surprising yet inevitable, but it's the illustrations--from the extreme close-ups of Wolfboy peeking through his paws to the big monster reveal that twists the book on a vertical display, where you can see the author's filmmaking experience at play--in which you'll luxuriate.

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