Status
Available
Call number
Call number
PB Mow
Local notes
PB Mow
Collection
Publication
Back Bay Books (2001), Edition: Reprint, 256 pages
Description
More than half a century ago, the naturalist Farley Mowat accepted an assignment to investigate why wolves were killing Arctic caribou. Mowat's account of the summer he lived in the frozen tundra alone - studying the wolf population and developing a deep affection for these wild creatures (who were no threat to caribou or man) - is today celebrated as a classic of nature writing, at once a tale of remarkable adventure and an indelible record of the myths and magic of wolves. Never Cry Wolf was made into a major motion picture by Walt Disney Productions.
Subjects
Awards
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1963
Physical description
256 p.; 5.38 inches
User reviews
LibraryThing member Cecrow
Farley Mowat has never disguised the fact that he's a man with a wagon of axes to grind, and that comes across clearly in his 1993 preface to the 30th anniversary edition of Never Cry Wolf. Happily he was drawn away from his originally intended depiction of "bureaucratic and scientific buffoonery"
There's no question wolves have been given a bad rap over the centuries in everything from Little Red Riding Hood to Dracula, etc. Mr. Mowat would have you believe you have far more to fear from an unfamiliar dog in your own neighbourhood. At one point he even shoos several of them away from one of their fresh kills he wishes to examine - this while he's completely naked and unarmed. The Canadian government hired him with the expectation he would return evidence of the beast's decimation of wild caribou, but what he discovers is just the opposite. The wolf is being vilified for the reckless hunting practices of men (largely for sport) that are quickly driving the caribou herds towards extinction.
This book has had a worldwide influence on how wolves are perceived, including a Russian piece of legislature I'd like to know more about. It reminded me of similar efforts to redeem the reputation of other animals such as sharks. Some facts are hotly debated, for example his claim that wolves live mainly on a diet of mice. How far to interpret Mowat's story as non-fiction (from the preface: "it is my practice never to allow facts to interfere with the truth") is a question inviting every reader to research and ponder.
A quick read with the right mix of insight and humour; alternatively a great book to read a chapter of now and then, easy to come back to.
Show More
to tell this engaging story of his experience among the wolves of northern Manitoba's barrens in the 1940s. There's no question wolves have been given a bad rap over the centuries in everything from Little Red Riding Hood to Dracula, etc. Mr. Mowat would have you believe you have far more to fear from an unfamiliar dog in your own neighbourhood. At one point he even shoos several of them away from one of their fresh kills he wishes to examine - this while he's completely naked and unarmed. The Canadian government hired him with the expectation he would return evidence of the beast's decimation of wild caribou, but what he discovers is just the opposite. The wolf is being vilified for the reckless hunting practices of men (largely for sport) that are quickly driving the caribou herds towards extinction.
This book has had a worldwide influence on how wolves are perceived, including a Russian piece of legislature I'd like to know more about. It reminded me of similar efforts to redeem the reputation of other animals such as sharks. Some facts are hotly debated, for example his claim that wolves live mainly on a diet of mice. How far to interpret Mowat's story as non-fiction (from the preface: "it is my practice never to allow facts to interfere with the truth") is a question inviting every reader to research and ponder.
A quick read with the right mix of insight and humour; alternatively a great book to read a chapter of now and then, easy to come back to.
Show Less
LibraryThing member EBT1002
This delightful memoir is based on two summers and a winter that Farley Mowat spent in the subarctic regions of southern Keewatin Territory and northern Manitoba as a biologist studying wolves and caribou. Sent there by the Canadian government to, as he describes it, confirm the hateful myths then
Show More
firmly held about wolves, Mowat instead learned about the symbiotic relationship between wolves and caribou and the terrible toll being wrought on both populations by white man's intrusion into the ecosystem. With humor and respect, Mowat tells the story of one family of wolves. Through this storytelling, he captures the vast beauty of the region, the majesty of both the wolves and the caribou on which they depend (although he illuminates the fact that the wolves primarily eat mice when such are plentiful), and the bemused innocence of the local natives as they worked to understand this white man's behavior. I chuckled out loud more than once and finished this quick read with a resounding sense of satisfaction. Four happy stars. Show Less
LibraryThing member dane31
Never Cry Wolf Review (Review)
“Never Cry Wolf” is about Farley Mowat and his love for biology. Farley Mowat begins an interest in biology when he is as young as five years old, when he sees two catfish at his grandmother’s pond. As he grows older he is educated in biology and fulfills his
“Never Cry Wolf” is more than just a biologist project. The book shows the true side of artic wolves. The book shows their behavior and how they live their lives in the Barren Lands. The hunters were the true antagonists of the decrease in deer population. Wolves were the public expectation of the problem. This shows that people are too quick to judge someone or something by its looks and by what others say about it. This novel is trying to show the external and internal purpose. The external purpose shows that wolves are not evil killing animals. The internal purpose shows that we can’t assume anything about a person, place, thing, or idea.
The biggest quote that stuck out for me was, “We have doomed the wolf not for what it is, but for what we deliberately and mistakenly perceive it to be-the mythologized epitome of a savage ruthless killer- which is, in reality, no more than a reflected image of ourselves.” This quote is the statement the book is trying to get across. That are perception on the wolf just shows how mistaken and evil we can be.
I have many likes about the book. I like how this book is written in a way that not just a biologist can read it, but all people can relate to his obstacles. His humor shown in the book makes it entertaining and keeps you interested. I also liked the main storyline of the novel. I liked the adventure from being a little kid and growing up to be a biologist, studying wolves in the Barren Lands of Canada. I do not have any dislikes; the only thing I was upset about was the hunters in the novel killing the caribou.
I recommend this book to all people interested in biology, wolves, and wildlife. This book is also good for people who are looking for a good read. The book is humorous, adventurous, and thrilling. This book is suited for kids in middle school and all the way up to senior citizens. I enjoyed this book and I know you will too!
“Never Cry Wolf” is about Farley Mowat and his love for biology. Farley Mowat begins an interest in biology when he is as young as five years old, when he sees two catfish at his grandmother’s pond. As he grows older he is educated in biology and fulfills his
Show More
dream of being a biologist. He is then called up by the Canadian Wildlife Service to investigate the problem for decreasing caribou population. The wildlife service blames this on the artic wolves. Mowat is sent to the Barren Lands where he finds out the real problem. He discovers the hunters are killing the caribou and soon realizes how much different the wolves really are. “Never Cry Wolf” is more than just a biologist project. The book shows the true side of artic wolves. The book shows their behavior and how they live their lives in the Barren Lands. The hunters were the true antagonists of the decrease in deer population. Wolves were the public expectation of the problem. This shows that people are too quick to judge someone or something by its looks and by what others say about it. This novel is trying to show the external and internal purpose. The external purpose shows that wolves are not evil killing animals. The internal purpose shows that we can’t assume anything about a person, place, thing, or idea.
The biggest quote that stuck out for me was, “We have doomed the wolf not for what it is, but for what we deliberately and mistakenly perceive it to be-the mythologized epitome of a savage ruthless killer- which is, in reality, no more than a reflected image of ourselves.” This quote is the statement the book is trying to get across. That are perception on the wolf just shows how mistaken and evil we can be.
I have many likes about the book. I like how this book is written in a way that not just a biologist can read it, but all people can relate to his obstacles. His humor shown in the book makes it entertaining and keeps you interested. I also liked the main storyline of the novel. I liked the adventure from being a little kid and growing up to be a biologist, studying wolves in the Barren Lands of Canada. I do not have any dislikes; the only thing I was upset about was the hunters in the novel killing the caribou.
I recommend this book to all people interested in biology, wolves, and wildlife. This book is also good for people who are looking for a good read. The book is humorous, adventurous, and thrilling. This book is suited for kids in middle school and all the way up to senior citizens. I enjoyed this book and I know you will too!
Show Less
LibraryThing member fuzzi
"Never Cry Wolf" is about the year the author spent in the Canadian barrens, observing wolves as part of a government project. The young biologist/naturalist finds in his study of the wolves and the surrounding fauna contradictions of what he has been taught...and what the anti-wolf bureaucrats
Never preachy, but humorous, touching, and always entertaining, I enjoyed this look into the illogic of government, the beauty of natural science, and the lamentable nature of man.
Show More
want him to find.Never preachy, but humorous, touching, and always entertaining, I enjoyed this look into the illogic of government, the beauty of natural science, and the lamentable nature of man.
Show Less
LibraryThing member msf59
“We have doomed the wolf not for what it is, but for what we deliberately and mistakenly perceive it to be...”
Mowat, a naturalist/biologist is given an assignment: spend the summer in the subarctic and study wolf behavior, particularly, their feeding habits. Mowat discovers one wolf family and
This is a terrific read. Funny and adventurous. I have heard much of it is fictionalized, but as a story, it really resounds. Surprisingly, it was written, about 50 years ago but still remains fresh and entertaining.
Mowat, a naturalist/biologist is given an assignment: spend the summer in the subarctic and study wolf behavior, particularly, their feeding habits. Mowat discovers one wolf family and
Show More
follows them closely, for several months. It is an eye-opening experience, giving him a deeper understanding and compassion for this misunderstood animal.This is a terrific read. Funny and adventurous. I have heard much of it is fictionalized, but as a story, it really resounds. Surprisingly, it was written, about 50 years ago but still remains fresh and entertaining.
Show Less
LibraryThing member RBeffa
A very entertaining (and slightly frightening) look at how Canadian bureaucracy sends Farley as a young biologist off into the true northern wilderness to spend perhaps one to two years alone studying wolves. From the supplies they send with him you know they expect him to report that wolves are
Farley's time there is transformative. You could say he goes native a bit. His observations, research and studies were ground breaking.
This is absolutely a book worth reading 50 years after it first came out.
Show More
bad bad bad and you should kill kill kill them all so the hunters can have their caribou. Farley expects to find what he has been told he will find, the "Big Bad Wolf." Instead, very quickly, he finds something different.Farley's time there is transformative. You could say he goes native a bit. His observations, research and studies were ground breaking.
This is absolutely a book worth reading 50 years after it first came out.
Show Less
LibraryThing member swampygirl
I really loved this book. I really enjoyed both Mowat's voice and what he had to say. It is sad to watch humans destroy the beauty around them.
LibraryThing member whitewavedarling
Mowat's writing is wonderful, full of careful observation and clever humor, but what's more wonderful in this particular book is that we're allowed to see one individual undergo the slow move from being entirely influenced by society's superstitions and fears regarding wolves on to being someone
Overall, this is simply an enjoyable and informative read, beautifully written, and hinged on an understated argument for the need for conservation and understanding. Anyone who enjoys nature writing or animals of any kind should read this book. Absolutely recommended.
Show More
who sees how unfair those fears and superstitions actually are. As Mowat learns about the wolves, his amazement comes through in the writing, as does the beauty of the wolves he so closely observes. And, in the background of the book, other characters and government blunders make the book frighteningly comical.Overall, this is simply an enjoyable and informative read, beautifully written, and hinged on an understated argument for the need for conservation and understanding. Anyone who enjoys nature writing or animals of any kind should read this book. Absolutely recommended.
Show Less
LibraryThing member bherner
Farley Mowat worked for Canada's equivelant of the Dept. of the Interior. He was asked to go into the wilderness to prove that wolves consumed vast quantities of game animals so that they could justify killing the wolves. Instead, Mowat got the wolves to trust him enough that he could follow them
Show More
and understand their secrets. In fact, he found, wolves eat vast quantities of voles/mice/lemmings, not the carabou etc. that everybody 'knew' they ate. Facinating reading and beautifully written. Show Less
LibraryThing member IreneF
Enormously entertaining, but there are solid reasons to believe Never Cry Wolf is at least partly fiction and perhaps plagiarized. See Wikipedia for more info.
LibraryThing member stunik
Mowat lived among the wolves. He slept and ate as they did (waking every few hours to walk in a circle, and settle down again; yummy mice).
LibraryThing member Dokfintong
Never Cry Wolf was a "must read" book in the 1970s, and I can't think of a person I knew who would admit not having read it. This new edition will not have the same broad reach or cultural importance, but a reader coming to it in 2015 should know that it is on many people's "Great Books" list, and
Mr. Mowat's work is controversial because it is fictionalized. Many of his books, including Never Cry Wolf, are like films "based on a true story." Estimating the degree of fictionalization depends a bit on the politics of the critic and the Wikipedia article on NCW outlines the controversy. More detailed discussion of Mowat's background story can be found with a quick web search that will also bring up many obituaries and memorial tributes. Mowat was vocal and pugnacious about his ideas. He was denied entry to the USA in 1985, purportedly for his leftist leanings. He tells that story in the 1986 "My Discovery of America," now out of print.
Never Cry Wolf became so important in part because it is so very readable. Laugh out loud funny in places, it is warmly appealing to even the youngest reader. It is the kind of gift to give a child to induce book addiction. Anyone with any love of nature will like it, in part because it is so exotic.
Never Cry Wolf is set in a world we can't remember and can hardly imagine, one where naturalists retained direct methodological links with 19th century luminaries. A world where it is normal for naturalists and explorers (and, latterly, Peace Corps volunteers) to revel in fieldwork that kept them out of sight for months and years at a time. Today communication is too easy and our fear of the world is out of control. Grant-making agencies, and the organizations they fund, impose strict fieldwork safety guidelines, and Peace Corps has been sued into becoming a nanny agency tasked with reporting every time a Volunteer burps. It is nearly impossible to imagine naturalists and anthropologists who preferred, and were able to pull off, an uninterrupted scientific life.
This new edition of Never Cry Wolf includes a nice little Farley Mowat biography with photos that makes it even more appealing as a gift for a young person you are trying to subvert. It ignores the controversy surrounding the book and I think this is a bad choice by the publisher.
I received a review copy of Never Cry Wolf by Farley Mowat (Open Road) through NetGalley.com.
Show More
that Farley Mowat (I have always loved that name.), primarily with Never Cry Wolf, helped shape the environmental movement (or perhaps "movements") that we know today. Mr. Mowat's work is controversial because it is fictionalized. Many of his books, including Never Cry Wolf, are like films "based on a true story." Estimating the degree of fictionalization depends a bit on the politics of the critic and the Wikipedia article on NCW outlines the controversy. More detailed discussion of Mowat's background story can be found with a quick web search that will also bring up many obituaries and memorial tributes. Mowat was vocal and pugnacious about his ideas. He was denied entry to the USA in 1985, purportedly for his leftist leanings. He tells that story in the 1986 "My Discovery of America," now out of print.
Never Cry Wolf became so important in part because it is so very readable. Laugh out loud funny in places, it is warmly appealing to even the youngest reader. It is the kind of gift to give a child to induce book addiction. Anyone with any love of nature will like it, in part because it is so exotic.
Never Cry Wolf is set in a world we can't remember and can hardly imagine, one where naturalists retained direct methodological links with 19th century luminaries. A world where it is normal for naturalists and explorers (and, latterly, Peace Corps volunteers) to revel in fieldwork that kept them out of sight for months and years at a time. Today communication is too easy and our fear of the world is out of control. Grant-making agencies, and the organizations they fund, impose strict fieldwork safety guidelines, and Peace Corps has been sued into becoming a nanny agency tasked with reporting every time a Volunteer burps. It is nearly impossible to imagine naturalists and anthropologists who preferred, and were able to pull off, an uninterrupted scientific life.
This new edition of Never Cry Wolf includes a nice little Farley Mowat biography with photos that makes it even more appealing as a gift for a young person you are trying to subvert. It ignores the controversy surrounding the book and I think this is a bad choice by the publisher.
I received a review copy of Never Cry Wolf by Farley Mowat (Open Road) through NetGalley.com.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Summer_Missfictional
Bleh. One of the most uninteresting and horribly written book I've read in a while.
Want proof? It took me nearly a month to read this book.
Not only that, but its filled with blatant lies about wolves.
Example: According to this garbagebook, apparently wolves live off of mice. Coming from someone
All in all, this book was a waste of my time. I appreciate that it tried to make people less afraid of wolves, but it sadly failed in that.
Want proof? It took me nearly a month to read this book.
Not only that, but its filled with blatant lies about wolves.
Example: According to this garbagebook, apparently wolves live off of mice. Coming from someone
Show More
who knows little regarding wolves prior to reading this novel, I know for a fact that wolves do NOT only eat mice. What a ridiculous lie.All in all, this book was a waste of my time. I appreciate that it tried to make people less afraid of wolves, but it sadly failed in that.
Show Less
LibraryThing member kawgirl
I read this book when I was camping and wished I had a pack of wolves to observe. A touching and fascinating book. A must read.
LibraryThing member jeanie1
self-deprecating author writes of his observations of the wolf. Humerous,
LibraryThing member smallbizpro
Many of the chapters describing the author's adventures studying the wolf are hilarious.
LibraryThing member kristenhazard
I read this book in one day in a Cordova Alaska Hotel room. It was pouring rain outside and we were exhausted from a couple of high adventure travel days. I devoured this book in the comfort of that warm hotel room. Later while at Denali we were able to observe a pack of wolves moving through a
Show More
river drainage. It made reading the book and observing the wolves all the more incredible to have these insights about them from Farley Mowat. I think I understand the idea of the wolf pack much more now. Show Less
LibraryThing member debnance
Farley Mowat heads off into the Canadian wilderness in search of wolves. He knows everything people have learned about wolves and everything he knows is wrong.I wasn't expecting this to be such a clever and funny book. Highly recommended.
LibraryThing member briandarvell
A great simple read of one of Canada's most loved authors. Never Cry Wolf is a fun and educational story which resounds well with anyone who has experienced the north first hand. After 15 years this book still reads great and I would recommend to most people.
LibraryThing member EricMilner
Mowat employs an engaging writing style and clever humor to recount his time in Northern Canada observing a brood of wolves in the late 1950's. Criticisms voiced over the years suggest much of his account is fictionalized and scientifically inaccurate, which reduces one's appreciation of it as a
Show More
true work of an adventuresome naturalist. Yet the craftsmanship, pace, and entertainment value combine to make it worth a few hours and distinguish it as a good recommend for a young reader. Show Less
LibraryThing member unclebob53703
Fascinating and often hilarious story of his study of wolves in Northern Canada. From an unceremonious beginning, he soon finds all of his preconceptions about the species shattered.
LibraryThing member andyray
This book is one of the main reasons that I read. By living with Farley for six months plus and his wolves, I learned that most of what mankind believes about them is scat. I alost dropped this because it was sloooow taking off. I think if he had put more of the wolf study in and taken out the
Show More
first few chapters it would have been better, but then, it wouldn't have been him. I look forward to reading more of his prodigeous work (some 30 books I understand) and especially hope that sense of humour he uses, mostly on himself, holds up in other books. Show Less
LibraryThing member AHS-Wolfy
Intending to write a satire on bureaucracy and those that perpetuate it this charming little book instead turned into a charming account of the author's time spent studying Arctic wolves in their natural habitat. It was the firm belief of the time that wolves were responsible for systematically
Departing from Ottawa he heads out to Churchill and after a brief stay there proceeds into the Barren Lands and is quickly fortunate in meeting Mike, a local trapper, and establishes a base camp at his nearby cabin. Unfortunately, Mike is rapidly scared off by a demonstration of the scientific experiments that he intends to carry out and so he is left alone to pursue his studies once again.
Upon making contact with a family of wolves, the author is repeatedly disabused of the established facts as he discovers not the blood-thirsty killing machine he expects but a playful group that are skilled providers that are extremely caring and protective of their young. Contrary to belief it seems the wolves feed mainly on rodents with only the occasional deer taken from the sick or young of the herds. As part of his experiments he undertakes to prove a large mammal could survive on such a diet and provides a recipe for the reader if they feel inclined to do the same.
Told in a similar style to that of Bill Bryson's travel books this is both a poignant and humorous tale and recommended to anyone who wants to discover just a little bit more than the common knowledge.
Show More
decimating the herds of caribou recently qualified naturalist, Farley Mowat, is sent on a mission to discover the exact relationship between the wolves and caribou for no documentary evidence of this well known fact actually exists.Departing from Ottawa he heads out to Churchill and after a brief stay there proceeds into the Barren Lands and is quickly fortunate in meeting Mike, a local trapper, and establishes a base camp at his nearby cabin. Unfortunately, Mike is rapidly scared off by a demonstration of the scientific experiments that he intends to carry out and so he is left alone to pursue his studies once again.
Upon making contact with a family of wolves, the author is repeatedly disabused of the established facts as he discovers not the blood-thirsty killing machine he expects but a playful group that are skilled providers that are extremely caring and protective of their young. Contrary to belief it seems the wolves feed mainly on rodents with only the occasional deer taken from the sick or young of the herds. As part of his experiments he undertakes to prove a large mammal could survive on such a diet and provides a recipe for the reader if they feel inclined to do the same.
Told in a similar style to that of Bill Bryson's travel books this is both a poignant and humorous tale and recommended to anyone who wants to discover just a little bit more than the common knowledge.
Show Less
LibraryThing member themulhern
Unappealing. Seemed to plunge into 70's hippie philosophy with alacrity. Wolves are great, but people philosophizing...
LibraryThing member Bruce_Deming
A very fun adventurous book.
Similar in this library
Lexile
1330L
Pages
256