Young Adult Fiction Prehistory
Sisters of the Wolf
- Publisher
- Dundurn Press
- Initial publish date
- Aug 2021
- Category
- Prehistory, General, Girls & Women
- Recommended Age
- 12 to 15
- Recommended Grade
- 7 to 10
- Recommended Reading age
- 12 to 15
-
Paperback / softback
- ISBN
- 9781459747524
- Publish Date
- Aug 2021
- List Price
- $14.99
-
eBook
- ISBN
- 9781459747548
- Publish Date
- Aug 2021
- List Price
- $8.99
Classroom Resources
Where to buy it
Description
2023 Saskatchewan Book Awards — Winner, YA Category • 2022 Red Maple Award — Shortlisted • 2022 SYRCA Snow Willow Award — Shortlisted
Can two Ice Age teens separated from their tribes overcome their differences to outwit their pursuer and survive the unforgiving wilds?
The climate is changing, game is disappearing, and two peoples of the Ice Age compete for survival in a savage world. Keena, from a powerful band of Neanderthals, and Shinoni, daughter of a Cro-Magnon shaman, are torn from their families by Haken, a ruthless hunter. The girls dislike each other but soon discover they need one another to survive. Together they escape but are pursued by Haken across an Ice Age landscape rumbling with advancing glaciers and teeming with mighty predators.
As Shinoni and Keena work to overcome disaster at every turn, they are joined by Tewa, a powerful she-wolf who becomes their guardian and spirit guide. Can their growing friendship overcome cultural, racial, and even species differences? Will they ever be able to get back to their families? Only the spirits know.
About the author
Patricia Miller-Schroeder has a master’s degree in biological anthropology and has written seventeen children’s books on nature, the environment, and science. She lives in Regina, Saskatchewan.
Awards
- Winner, Saskatchewan Book Awards, Young Adult Literature Book Award
- Short-listed, Red Maple Award
- Short-listed, SYRCA Snow Willow Award
Excerpt: Sisters of the Wolf (by (author) Patricia Miller-Schroeder)
CHAPTER ONE
NEANDERTHAL (KRAG)
MOUNTAIN CAMP
“STAY AWAY FROM THE BUSHES!” Keena’s warning echoes across the clearing.
The children jerk their heads up, eyes wide like startled deer, before returning to their task of gathering wood. Keena clutches her father’s spear in one hand and scans the forest edge. Atuk gave her the weapon this morning before he left camp with the other hunters to kill the beast terrorizing their band. Father trusts her to protect the young ones. She’ll do her best, but she wishes he were here with her now. Her legs tremble as she sniffs for danger. Only the children’s familiar scent and the smell of pine needles reach her nostrils.
“Keena, let go.” Tat tugs at her other hand, struggling to break free of her grip. “I’m big and strong. I can help.” His chubby body wriggles with excitement.
“You’re growing up, Tat.” Keena smiles at his toothy grin and big brown eyes. “You can help pick up firewood, but you have to stay close.” She releases his hand.
“Whoohee!” Tat races toward the others, his tangled curls barely visible above the swaying grasses.
Keena tracks his movement until he reaches the group. A queasy feeling settles in her gut as she returns to her vigil. Tat has only lived through four snow times. He shouldn’t be here. Not today, when she’s the only one watching the children. She told that to his mother, but Teal was giving breath to a new small one and the women were helping her. Tat’s a handful, but everyone says Keena can handle him.
Clouds cover the sun and a breeze stirs the trees. Keena pulls her furs tight against the biting wind. There’s a movement in the shadows. A flash of gold in the greenery? She blinks and strains her ears, but hears only the rustle of leaves. Then a sudden shift in the wind from the forest slaps Keena’s face. Her nostrils flare. There it is. The smell of death.
Caw, caw. Crows take flight, their bodies black against the sky.
“Run! Drop your wood. Run to the cave.” Keena rushes to gather the children. Where’s Tat? He’s not among them. “Tat!” Her scream mingles with the cries of the crows and the children’s shrieks. Then she sees Tat, following a hare into the tall grass at the forest’s edge.
The bushes explode as a giant tawny shape bursts from the undergrowth and seizes Tat. The pungent odour of lion mixes with the scent of terror heavy in the air.
“No, no! Not Tat.” Tears stream down Keena’s face. This can’t be happening. She can’t let this happen. “Eeeyaaa. Drop him!” She advances on the cat with her spear raised. “Let him go!” What would Tat’s mother do? What would Atuk do? Her father trusted her to keep the children safe.
Keena scoops rocks from the ground and hurls them at the beast. The lion snarls and backs away, shaking Tat’s lifeless body, sending his blood splattering over her. She sinks to her knees, spear pointing at the lion, waiting for the fatal spring.
“Eee-yii-yi!” The children have reached their mothers. Teal’s screams rise above the rest, mingling with the wails of her newborn. “My boy! Tat, Tat!”
The big cat’s fierce amber eyes glare at Keena, mocking her, before it disappears into the bushes with its prey.
***
That evening, in the high country near the glacier, a silver moon shines in the sky. Ice crystals ride the breeze, stirring the trees that blanket the slope near the Krag cave. The deep, throaty cough of a lion echoes in the valley, wakening Keena from the most troubled sleep of her thirteen snow times. She hugs herself, trying to shake the blood-filled nightmare from her mind. Ominous figures cast by the firelight loom on the stone walls all around her.
Keena pushes back the bison-hide cover and rises from her bed of dry grasses. She’s careful not to wake her parents sprawled on one side and her aunt and cousin on the other. All around are shadowy lumps and muffled snores. She picks her way to the entrance, where a row of fires protects her people from the night hunters outside.
Keena stares beyond the flames. Two pairs of orbs glint in the dark outer camp. She throws more brush onto the fires, and sparks shoot high into the night.
“They’re only foxes.” Ubra emerges from the dimness behind her.
“I know, Mother, but they’re not the only ones out there,” Keena whispers. The distant call of the lion floats on the wind. She shivers. Even the heat of the flames can’t warm her. “I was there when the lion took Tat.” Keena squeezes her eyes shut to block the horror from her mind.
“It wasn’t your fault, child.” Ubra hugs her. “No one could’ve saved Tat.”
Mother’s right. Little Tat wasn’t the first of their band to be taken by the great cat. Uncle Orak, already crippled by a charging muskox, was killed at the stream several suns ago. Keena’s friend Morda was taken three suns ago while gathering plants in the forest. And now sweet, playful Tat is gone. Keena shudders. None of their bodies or bones have been found. The hunters searched for the lion, but it was like a spirit and left no trace. Perhaps Leeswi, the Earth Mother, had sent it. If she had, nothing could stop it.
Editorial Reviews
The hardships, lifestyle, and priorities slide in to form a rich environment, and it's clear that the girls both have different ways of seeing life, not only compared with each other, but with early teens today.
Bookworm for Kids
With two strong female protagonists, Miller-Schroeder has created an enthralling glimpse into a long-vanished world that keeps readers engaged from the first page. Recommended for all adventure fans.
School Library Journal
While it was clear Shinoni is a more advanced human (Cro-Magnon's are called early modern humans) — and one the reader could relate more to — Keena's willingness to try, to learn, and to change made her an enjoyable character to read.
BookTime
Sisters of the Wolf is a fun, action-packed story. It is well-written and well-researched. I recommend to any young reader looking for a new and unique read.
Judy B., Librarian at East Muskingum Middle School
Miller-Schroeder shows that girls have always been capable on their own, and encourages young girls to get interested in prehistory, and scientific fields like paleontology and archaeology. Both informative and engaging, Sisters of the Wolf will interest readers of Jean Auel’s Earth’s Children series, and anyone interested in learning about prehistory. Recommended for readers aged 11-16.
Sienna for the Surrey Libraries’ Teen Book Review
Miller-Schroeder shows that girls have always been capable on their own, and encourages young girls to get interested in prehistory, and scientific fields like paleontology and archaeology. Both informative and engaging, Sisters of the Wolf will interest readers of Jean Auel’s Earth’s Children series, and anyone interested in learning about prehistory. Recommended for readers aged 11-16.
Surrey Libraries’ Teen Book Review
This unusual adventure takes readers on an action-filled journey of resilience, equality, and friendship.
Calgary Herald
The characters are rich and interesting in their struggles to find a balance between surviving and continuing to share their cultures with one another.
Young Adulting
Packed with excitement, adventure, and character development ... The pacing of the book is quick as the girls come across many problems one after another. The novel will interest many readers as it does not only explore the difficulties that the girls had to face, but also teaches the readers about overcoming racial differences.
Benjamin for Surrey Libraries’ Teen Book Review
Sisters of the Wolf is a fine accomplishment, highly educational, and the kind of adventure that was only written about boys in the past. Be strong, sisters!
Fresh Fiction
The strong girl-power in this vibrant storytelling about friendship and trust across racial and species boundaries is even more compelling with its prehistoric setting. Intriguing and fast-paced, this adventure with its strong characters and vivid details of a long-ago time and place keep a reader captivated right to the satisfying end.
Judith Silverthorne, award-winning author of Convictions
An atmospheric and suspenseful tale that will take young readers back to prehistoric times.
Alisha Sevigny, author of the Secrets of the Sands series
Sisters of the Wolf contains action and adventure, a unique historical setting and a story about strong women and girls, and so there is something to suit every taste in the intermediate age group. Recommended.
CM: Canadian Review of Materials
This was a great book. It reminds me of Children of the Dawnland by W Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear. The story uses information gathered by archeologists and weaves it into an intriguing tale. I enjoyed the relationships with other peoples and the animals they encountered, [and] the female heroes and their friendship.
Tracey M., Librarian at Gates Public Library
This book demonstrates what true teamwork and trust are all about [and] proves that anyone can work together and achieve all obstacles no matter if they are friends or enemies ... An enticing and adventurous read that will teach many life lessons along the way.
Meghan S., Librarian at Lackawanna Public Library
An absorbing introduction for younger readers, Miller-Schroeder's story explores the fascinating world of 40,000 years ago, when humans of many sorts were forging new relationships with each other, and with the animals around them.
Rebecca Wragg Sykes, archaeologist and award-winning author of Kindred: Neanderthal Life, Love, Death and Art
The action in this fast-paced survival story moves quickly as the girls come across one fearful predator and pitfall after another, and the novel is sure to pique an interest in prehistoric people and places.
Kirkus Reviews
What an enjoyable and inspiring read for junior readers with an original setting. Lots of problem-solving and girl power, with clean, suitable content. I feel this easy-to-read tale of two girls from different backgrounds will be very appealing to 10- to 14-year-olds and I will certainly be buying it for our school library once published.
Caroline L., Librarian at St Joseph's College Mildura
