The Wild Road by Gabriel King Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Wild Road
Book Review: Unforgettable, if not always pleasant, hero cat
Summary: 4 Stars
First: this is less fun than reading cats as imagined by Paul Gallico and Robert Westall. Where those two authors' cats always stand firmly in relation to the human world, the people in this world are shadowy figures, either "dulls" (kitten Tag's name for his owners) or menacing. Oh, there are a few decent people who appear from time to time, but this story is a hero-quest in which animals and people coexist but are not really codependent.Second: you'll never look at your cats quite the same way again. While I have not been tempted to reread THE WILD ROAD yet, and it's been a year, it's extraordinary how many of Tag's observations and impressions occur to me on a regular basis.
Result? Nobody who loves cats should miss this book.
Warning: some of the book is a little hard to take-- one of the things Tag is called upon to do, by the magic cat Majicou, is rescue cats who are being captured for experimentation, and there are some pitiful animals who've been through some of it already. Also, it's very hard to resist constantly "translating" the myth into human terms. (minor spoiler: it turns out there IS a rather famous alchemist/scientist who is the villain-- with a touch of real tragedy much of his animal-abuse stems from his fascination with his pet and desire to follow the "wild road" that only cats traveln on-- but, even when this scientist acquires his famous name-- hint-- gravity-- it doesn't really illuminate very much).
Resist the urge to translate, if you can. Situating the events with times and places is interesting, but not as interesting as all that.
There are lots of in-jokes for cat lovers and breeders. I've never had a purebred, but I realized when I began investigating them that Tag and his companions all have logical purebred names. Loved the joke of the white cat saying "speak up, lovey, I'm as deaf as a post" (white cats genetically are often deaf).
And the image of the noble, dumb Norwegian forest cat ineptly trying to care for his lady love (until Tag arrives and scolds him that it's food, not a pillow, she needs). And later seeing the Norwegian Forest cat zig zag down a tree (one of their talents!) It turns out this pair of illicit lovers (escaped from their breeders to be together) are the king and queen of cats whose rescue is Tag's task.
The poetic language and vivid description make this a book of substance. Think of it as a sort of Arthurian quest with a feline hero (in fact, Tag is called on to bring the cats to Tintagel, which is an Arthurian site, of course) and the occasional vagueness or darkness shouldn't be too troubling. This is a fairy tale for adults.
Book Review: Wonderful cat characters, overkill in areas
Summary: 3 Stars
The cats in this book are real cats. The mystical elements it proposes concern their history and their ability to travel the Wild Roads of the title. If you like cats, you'll love the way these talk and think.The villain is very vaguely drawn, and the first part of the book is hard to understand. Tag's viewpoint is used: that of a young, inexperienced kitten. Once he learns a little, and meets some of his friends, interesting individual stories begin to emerge & the persistent reader is rewarded.
A bit monotonous on the horrid weather, how hungry and skinny everyone is, and how valliantly they fight, but the quest formula works. There are riches to be found here.
Book Review: Wonderful!- a review by a 13 year-old Wild Road fan
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is one of my favorites. I loved going through the story with the characters. Although parts were hard to understand, it was fascinating and never lost my interest. I loved the ending, and can't wait to read the sequal. The character are wonderful and well defined. The book is an exciting look into the animal's mind.Book Review: flat and boring!
Summary: 1 Stars
The story is flat and the main character Tag does absolutely nothing in the adventure. He is not exactly a hero or an animal you can understand or feel along with. Several things in the book are not explained and stay vague throughout the end, like why are the queen and king so important and who are they? For me, reading this book was a big disappointment. I saw people make comparisons, but it is in no way like Tolkien and it doesn't even come close to the quality of Tad Williams' 'Tailchaser's Song'. I will NOT buy the sequel, the golden cat - that tells you something about The Wild Road! I can strongly recommend Tailchaser's Song which has a similar storyline, but is worked out so much better with characters that will really touch you.