Gone Wolf by Amber McBride
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Special thanks to Raincoast Books for sending a copy for review.
Summary:
In the future, a Black girl known only as Inmate Eleven is kept confined — to be used as a biological match for the president’s son, should he fall ill. She is called a Blue — the color of sadness. She lives in a small-small room with her dog, who is going wolf more often – he’s pacing and imagining he’s free. Inmate Eleven wants to go wolf too―she wants to know why she feels so Blue and what is beyond her small-small room.
In the present, Imogen lives outside of Washington DC. The pandemic has distanced her from everyone but her mother and her therapist. Imogen has intense phobias and nightmares of confinement. Her two older brothers used to help her, but now she’s on her own, until a college student helps her see the difference between being Blue and sad, and Black and empowered.
In this symphony of a novel, award-winning author Amber McBride lays bare the fears of being young and Black in America, and empowers readers to remember their voices and stories are important, especially when they feel the need to go wolf (Goodreads).
Thoughts:
As usual, Amber McBride did not disappoint with another hard-hitting novel! Last time, her poetry book, We Are All So Good At Smiling, left me speechless, and I expected nothing less from Gone Wolf. Without a doubt, this novel didn’t just meet my standards, but it completely shattered them and left me with the harsh truth.
Plot:
In Bible Boot of the United States, a girl called Inmate Eleven lives in a little cell with her wolf named Ira. Inmate Eleven is different from everyone else because she is a Blue, which means she is considered the “lesser” group of society. In this world, Blues are subordinate to Clones, who are “superior” and “benevolent.” From the beginning, Inmate Eleven was taught the importance of listening to orders and how Clones are simply better. As she learns more about the true nature of Bible Boot and her purpose as an organ donor for the president’s son, Larkin, Inmate Eleven thirsts for a world of equality where Blues are respected.
She befriends Larkin, who helped her claim a name for herself, Imogen. Imogen and Larkin later tries to escape when a rebellion breaks out in Bible Boot and meet a Black man named Mr. King. Mr. King taught them that Imogen and others are deemed Blue because they are sad and because they are Black like him. In the present, the story of Inmate Eleven is created by Imogen, a Black girl who lost everything to the pandemic. Imogen’s real and imaginary story sparks the deep need for action and a wave of grief for all the lives lost from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gone Wolf explores the mental scars left on the young people by the pandemic due to a social disconnect and loss of loved ones. I love the way the novel touches on the real struggles we all went through during COVID-19 with a simple story, and how Imogen’s poems showed significant takeaways about her life so that we can understand Imogen better.
Being Blue:
The concept of deep emotions showing on one’s skin is unique and hits exactly the way it is supposed to. In Imogen’s story, the generational trauma of oppression and hatred of Black people ran so deep that it shows, physically. Blues are treated like slaves and whipped for any sign of defiance, just like how Black people were treated before the Civil War. This also shows how Black Americans are still treated as lesser by some people.
I have and will always be against inequality of race and beliefs, but reading this book made me feel it on another level: to be tortured and having to suppress your emotions by bottling up your pain all while it overwhelms you on the inside and out. McBride portrays the strengths of not just the pioneers who paved the way for a more equal society, but every single Black person who has been and still is oppressed by systemic racism and those who are still hurting inside but are unable to tell their truth.
Formatting:
One thing I absolutely have to mention is how informative this story is. As Imogen in the real world learns more about the truth of what her people suffered through, the author adds little documents and news related to the progression of equality for Black people. From hard examples of hate to the recent victims of racism, McBride not only incorporates a message within her story, but she also connects this to the world we know to make it even more intimate.
Closing:
Ending serenely, Gone Wolf was certainly a journey. I would recommend this novel to a younger audience since the language is fairly simple; however, this is appropriate for everyone because of the lesson about equality that we all should learn more about.
Reviewed by Jenny Y.