Popular picturebook creator Yuval Zommer returns with a beautifully illustrated modern fable with an environmental theme, which sees the ‘wild’ take on its own animal-like character (perhaps a dog or a wolf), artistically made up of trees, shrubs, rivers, plains and all sorts of details from the natural world. The Wild faces challenges caused by human activity, and the beauty and freedom of the Wild clearly decline as the story progresses. Despite the striking damage caused to the Wild, there is still scope for the Wild to be cared for and to thrive again if collective action is taken and the tone at the end is hopeful and encouraging in a manner appropriate to the age of the target audience.

I loved the illustrations and that ‘the wild’ is in the shape of an animal. It serves as a really good reminder of how the land is there for living creatures to enjoy but that they also have to respect the wild and take care of it. It then shows how humans have taken advantage of the wild and taken too much from it, damaging the wild rather than caring for it. I also love the message at the end that one voice alone is not enough, but many voices can get across a message about climate change and the damage that has been done to the wild. Too often, you hear people say that one person making a change won’t make a difference to climate change, but the end of the book points out that every change in someone’s home or in someone’s city will make a difference, which is an important message.

This stunningly illustrated story could provide a gentle introduction to climate change for younger children but would also be very thought-provoking for older children, already aware of climate change. The book would be a good choice for assemblies and PSHE time across the whole school, or to include in classroom libraries for children to enjoy and muse upon at their pace.