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by Marion Dane Bauer
Meet Runt, the youngest pup in the wolf pack…and the smallest. And small means weak in the harsh woods where the family must survive.
"Raven strutted around the speechless pup, examining him from every side. 'You are small, aren't you?' he said at last. 'Smaller than all the rest. But still' - he tipped his head to one side, considering - 'small can be brave… fierce. Why, I've seen a pair of wrens chase a marauding crow the length of the sky. And the small red squirrel often puts the larger gray to shame.' Brave? Fierce? Runt hardly knew the meaning of the words. He liked their sound though."
(Page 11-12)
Runt wants to prove that he is brave, fierce and that he will survive and this often leads him to make mistakes that distance him further from the pack. Runt struggles for the approval of his father, King, and a place of importance in the family along with his brothers and sisters as he comes to know who he really is.
Runt's journey as he searches for his worth and his survival makes for a moving story that inspires us to find out who we really are and our role in life, as we ask ourselves, "Can Runt do it? Will he survive?"
Booktalk by:
Allison Dunnet, Calder Branch
A runt is the smallest in the litter, a weakling.
Runt is the last born in a wolf pack, putting him at the bottom of the pack. He wants to be accepted the same way his normal size brothers and sisters, Leader, Sniffer, Runner and Thinker are accepted. But, to do this he needs to earn a new name. This is not an easy task. He makes lots of mistakes and ends up pleasing no one. Even his father ignores him. He feels like he'll never get things right.
Would the pack be better off without him? Will Runt prove himself to his father, his family and the pack? Will he earn a new name?
Booktalk by:
Rita Boucher, Children's Division
Meet Runt, the youngest pup in the wolf pack…and the smallest. And small means weak in the harsh woods where the family must survive.
"Raven strutted around the speechless pup, examining him from every side. 'You are small, aren't you?' he said at last. 'Smaller than all the rest. But still' - he tipped his head to one side, considering - 'small can be brave… fierce. Why, I've seen a pair of wrens chase a marauding crow the length of the sky. And the small red squirrel often puts the larger gray to shame.' Brave? Fierce? Runt hardly knew the meaning of the words. He liked their sound though."
(Page 11-12)
Runt wants to prove that he is brave, fierce and that he will survive and this often leads him to make mistakes that distance him further from the pack. Runt struggles for the approval of his father, King, and a place of importance in the family along with his brothers and sisters as he comes to know who he really is.
Runt's journey as he searches for his worth and his survival makes for a moving story that inspires us to find out who we really are and our role in life, as we ask ourselves, "Can Runt do it? Will he survive?"
Booktalk by:
Allison Dunnet, Calder Branch
A runt is the smallest in the litter, a weakling.
Runt is the last born in a wolf pack, putting him at the bottom of the pack. He wants to be accepted the same way his normal size brothers and sisters, Leader, Sniffer, Runner and Thinker are accepted. But, to do this he needs to earn a new name. This is not an easy task. He makes lots of mistakes and ends up pleasing no one. Even his father ignores him. He feels like he'll never get things right.
Would the pack be better off without him? Will Runt prove himself to his father, his family and the pack? Will he earn a new name?
Booktalk by:
Rita Boucher, Children's Division