Into the Wild (novel)
Into the Wild is a fantasy novel written by Erin Hunter. The novel was published by HarperCollins in Canada and the United States in January 2003, and in the United Kingdom in February 2003. It is the first novel in the Warriors series. The book has been published in paperback, and e-book formats in twenty different languages. The story is about a young domestic cat named Rusty who leaves his human owners to join a group of forest-dwelling feral cats called ThunderClan, adopting a new name: Firepaw. He is trained to defend and hunt for the Clan, becomes embroiled in a murder and betrayal within the Clan, and, at the end of the book, receives his warrior name, Fireheart, after a battle with another Clan. He must face the evil Tigerclaw. The novel is written from the perspective of Fireheart.
The series began in 2003 when HarperCollins requested Holmes to write a book on feral cats. After creating one storyline Holmes brought in Kate Cary to finish writing the book as Holmes went behind the scenes to edit and supervise the details. Holmes has compared the style of the book to a different language as the books are written by three separate authors. She feels that Erin Hunter must have a consistent voice the entire series. The story uses a lexicon with words such as "twoleg" substituted for "human" or "new-leaf" for "spring". The style has been compared to the Harry Potter series, J.R.R. Tolkien and Brian Jacques. Themes include family, loyalty, death, courage, and survival. Into the Wild was critically well received. Booklist believed the book would appeal to followers of Brian Jacques' Redwall series. Among other awards, it claimed third place in the 2006 Young Reader's Choice Award.
Development and publication
Conception
In 2003, HarperCollins requested Victoria Holmes to create a fantasy series about feral cats, but, being more interested in dogs and not a reader of fantasy, she was less than enthusiastic. She "couldn't imagine coming up with enough ideas". Nonetheless, she worked with the concept, expanding the storyline with elements of war, politics, revenge, doomed love, and religious conflict. Although the original plan was a stand-alone novel, enough material was created for several books, and the publisher decided upon a six-volume series. Holmes then enlisted the help of another author, Kate Cary whom Holmes had previously edited for and knew she loved cats.The first volume, Into the Wild, was written by Kate Cary under the pseudonym Erin Hunter, and completed in about three months. Holmes continued to act behind the scenes editing and supervising details. Afterwards, Holmes began to like the idea of using cats since she realized how they can be leading private lives without any humans realizing.
Pseudonym
With four authors at the time Holmes decided to have a pseudonym since having four authors would place the books at different places at libraries, confusing and possibly scaring off potential readers. The last name Hunter was chosen since it put the books next to the similar Redwall series.Publication history
Into the Wild was first published as a hardcover by HarperCollins on January 9, 2003, in Canada. The book was released on January 21, 2003, in the United States, and in February 2003 in the United Kingdom. Into the Wild was released as a paperback in the US on January 6, 2004. On September 4, 2007, the book was released as an eBook, and on Amazon's Kindle. The book was one of the first to be in HarperCollins' "Browse Inside" program where twenty percent of the novel is available online. For a limited time, the complete novel was also available online. The paperback version sold 150,637 copies in 2008.The novel has been released and translated in twenty countries including German, Britain, France, Russia, Japan, Korea, China, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Portugal, Hungary, Brazil, Norway and Greece. In Germany, the book has also been released as an audiobook. The Chinese version was released on October 31, 2008, with a 3-D card of Firepaw.
Plot
Into the Wild begins with a battle in a forest between the cats of outnumbered ThunderClan and RiverClan over Sunningrocks, a group of rocks in the forest, around RiverClan and ThunderClan territory where warrior cats bask in the sun. ThunderClan's deputy, Redtail the tortoiseshell tom, calls a retreat. Spottedleaf the dark tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat and Bluestar the blue-gray she-cat call on StarClan - deceased warrior ancestors of the Clans who live on in spirit form after dying and watch over the living Clan cats - for answers. Spottedleaf is given a prophecy; "Fire Alone Will Save Our Clan".Rusty, a curious flame-colored tom Kittypet, is driven to the forest after a dream of him hunting a mouse. Rusty runs into Graypaw, dark gray tom from ThunderClan who has just become an apprentice. Rusty, however, does not run away and fights the apprentice. After the battle, Graypaw tells Rusty he fought very well, for a Kittypet, and proceeds to tell him about the Clans. Bluestar and a golden tabby tom named Lionheart, also from ThunderClan, who were watching the whole time, reveal themselves and invite Rusty to join ThunderClan.
Due to his domesticated past, some members of the Clan are hostile towards Rusty. This hostility eventually leads Rusty to attack Longtail, a pale brown black-striped tabby tom who purposefully fights Rusty to prove his worth, losing his jingling collar in the ensuing fight, as well as tearing Longtail's ear. Bluestar then ends the fight and announces that Rusty has earned his apprentice name, Firepaw. Ravenpaw the jet-black tom interrupts this, alerting the Clan of the death of Redtail before he collapses. Tigerclaw the large dark brown tabby tom brings the lifeless body to the Clan. Lionheart becomes the new deputy of ThunderClan.
Firepaw forms a strong friendship with Graypaw, and Ravenpaw, who is the apprentice of the ambitious warrior Tigerclaw. Firepaw finds a banished loner named Yellowfang, a skinny dark gray she-cat. After breaking the warrior code to feed her, he is required to care for her.
When Bluestar, Tigerclaw, Ravenpaw, Firepaw and Graypaw go on a journey to the mystical Moonstone, located in a sacred site within an abandoned Twoleg mine called Highstones by the Clan cats, so Bluestar can commune with StarClan, ShadowClan attacks ThunderClan's camp. The five cats on the journey return in time to turn the tide of the battle, during which ThunderClan's new deputy Lionheart is killed. A few days later, Spottedleaf is slaughtered and Frostfur the snow-white she-cat's kits are stolen by Brokenstar the dark brown tabby tom and his warriors. Everyone except Firepaw and Graypaw believe that Yellowfang has betrayed the Clan.
Firepaw learns from Ravenpaw that Tigerclaw killed Redtail. Searching for the kidnapped kits, Firepaw and Graypaw lead Ravenpaw to a barn where he can be safe and have company, living with a loner named Barley, short black-and-white tom. Firepaw then leads a rescue party with Yellowfang to rescue the lost kits in ShadowClan territory and emerges victorious. Brokenstar and his followers are banished from the Clan.
Tigerclaw, still trusted by the Clan, suspects Firepaw knows his secret. Because of their heroism on the rescue party, Firepaw and Graypaw are promoted to warriors by Bluestar, who gives them their warrior names, Fireheart and Graystripe. Yellowfang is promoted to medicine cat. Graystripe and Fireheart sit vigil, promising to protect the Clan with their lives.
Style
The style of the book has also been compared to the Redwall series by Brian Jacques. A reviewer for The Plain Dealer wrote that the book "is patterned in the style of classics by J.R.R. Tolkien or Brian Jacques". While School Library Journal recommended the book to Redwall fans, the reviewer still felt the style wasn't as elegant.Lexicon
The book has a lexicon with certain different names for foreign objects. A Children's Literature review noted the words "kittypet" and "twoleg" which mean housecat and humans respectively. In the book, instead, of using "said", Cary uses the word "mewed". This was criticized with the reviewer writing "that 'he mewed', 'she purred', and 'the warrior mewed', which pass for cat talk, grows old fast". In response to a question at the Q&A section of the forum Holmes explained that the names come "in two parts, either or both of which can reflect something about the cat's appearance, personality, or habits". However, they must also be part of the world they know; Holmes originally gave Tigerclaw the name Hammerclaw until one of the editors pointed out the cats wouldn't know what a hammer is. For the names, Kate Cary says that she takes in inspiration for the names from "sight, sounds and scents the cats would experience". At the same time, more names become available as the cat's world becomes more diverse.Genres
Harper Collins originally requested that Holmes write a "fantasy story on feral cats". Though troubled on what to write about at first, Holmes realized she could add human themes and issues into the book such as "war, politics, revenge, doomed love, religious conflict". An interviewer has described the plot as "Shakespearian: a mad leader, intra-clan betrayal, war, star-crossed lovers, death". Reviews have also called the story an "animal adventure".The novel was picked to be part of the young adult fantasy genre due to its increasing popularity. Cherith Baldry feel that the growth of genre is due to the fact that "fantasy is something very deeply rooted in the human mind, not just for children". Fantasy stories are able to deal with human emotions helping readers to deal with them in the real world. Another Erin Hunter, Kate Cary felt that fantasy books such as Harry Potter "is a sign of a deepening need for fantasy to brighten our lives". She describes how as a child she was far less restricted than today's children whose days are structured and scheduled. Cary feels that fantasy stories help kids "escape into the world of the imagination, because it's the only place they can be really free and un-judged".
Themes
Publishers Weekly noted that themes such as family, friendship and responsibility are also taught in the warrior code, the set of rules that the Clans must follow. Holmes has said that one of her favorite things about writing the series is being able to add in themes that apply to us all such as family, loss, honor, bravery, death, loyalty, and following rules. Other themes include "death and spirituality and family and relationships". She also added in human themes such as "starting at a new school, falling in love with the wrong person and being bullied by someone who should look after you ". To a reviewer for Kirkus Reviews, the human theme of fitting in was easily found and applauded when Rusty succeeds.Another theme found throughout the book is the hardship of life in the wild. Reviews have noted how the story does not cover up the hardships of Clan life. School Library Journal commented on how the story describes the hardships and difficulties of a feral cat's life in detail and how there is no sugarcoating of the violence. Fantasy Book Review also wrote "Erin Hunter does not spare the reader from the grim realities of living in the wild". Kirkus Reviews noted that doing so shows how the Clans are on the brink of survival.