Loving the Wild Ones

This story has many sensitive topics.  It contains many trigger warnings: child endangerment, abandonment, abduction, human trafficking, prostitution, abuse (physical, mental, emotional, verbal, sexual), rape, misogyny, suicide, death, grief, victim’s guilt, blood, bullying, and violence.

TITLE: The Wild Ones

AUTHOR: Nafiza Azad
PUBLISHER: Margaret K. McElderry Books
RELEASE DATE: August 3rd, 2021

GENRES: YOUNG ADULT FICTION---Fantasy
BUY LINK: https://bookshop.org/a/11727/9781534484962

Released: August 3, 2021

The Wild Ones is one of the most interesting and beautiful books that I have read this year.  Author Nafiza Azad has written a book that looks at what it means to be female and deal with your demons and vulnerabilities.  This book is magical and the writing is superb! 

We meet the Wild Ones, a group of young women who are diverse and beautiful. They are named Paheli, Valentina, Sevda, Widad, Daraja, Kamboja, Areum, Talei, Etsuko, Ghufran, and Ligaya.   I like they come from all over the planet.  They move as one sisterhood, but they each have their own voice and personalities.  You learn more about them through the Book of Memories, whose pages are dispersed throughout the book.  What I love most about this book is the sisterhood between the Wild Ones.  Each comes from a difficult situation and they refuse to be victims again.  

The magic system and the magical creatures are unique to anything that I have previously read.  They help to keep the reader engaged in the story.  But the real star of this book is the writing.  As we are wrapping up the Olympics, I want to give a gold medal to Naiza Azad.  This book is simply beautiful.  She alternates between plot-based narrative and stream of consciousness writing, along with excerpts from this Book of Memory.  It has a poetic, flowery feel.  I know that is not everyone's cup of tea, but I dig it and it works so well for this story.

While parts of this book are heartbreaking and sad, it is not a sad story.  It is about this sisterhood of young women, who are brave and strong.  I enjoyed every bit of this book. As part of the Turn the Page Book Tour, I created a playlist inspired by this book.  This playlist has 12 songs: one for each Wild One and one for the author; it is music from around the world to represent the diversity of the Wild Ones and the cities they visit. Click this Spotify link to take a listen: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7wPnEF3FSXwHmkhVqRKsgu?si=43c2464138a443ce

Rating: 💖💖💖💖.5/5

SYNOPSIS:

Meet the Wild Ones: girls who have been hurt, abandoned and betrayed all their lives. It all began with Paheli, who was once betrayed by her mother and sold to a man in exchange for a favor. When Paheli escapes, she runs headlong into a boy with stars in his eyes. This boy, as battered as she is, tosses Paheli a box of stars before disappearing. With the stars, Paheli gains access to the Between, a place of pure magic and mystery. Now, Paheli collects girls like herself and these Wild Ones use their magic to travel the world, helping the hopeless and saving others from the fates they suffered. Then Paheli and the Wild Ones learn that the boy who gave them the stars, Taraana, is in danger. He’s on the run from powerful forces within the world of magic. But if Taraana is no longer safe and free, neither are the Wild Ones. And that…is a fate the Wild Ones refuse to accept. Ever again.

Author Nafiza Azad

AUTHOR INFORMATION

Nafiza Azad is a self-identified island girl. She has hurricanes in her blood and dreams of a time she can exist solely on mangoes and pineapple. Born in Lautoka, Fiji, she currently resides in British Columbia, Canada where she reads too many books, watches too many K-dramas, and writes stories about girls taking over the world. Her debut YA fantasy was the Morris Award–nominated The Candle and the Flame. The Wild Ones is her second novel.