A young cub is snatched from his family and home by a giant eagle, then dropped, injured and alone, in a suburban garden. This is where he meets his first Human, and begins his long journey to becoming the most famous dingo in the world. He will never see his mountain home again, or his family.
But it is his destiny to save alpine dingoes from extinction, and he dreams of a time when all cubs like him can live in the wild in safety, instead of facing poison and bullets and hatred.
In 2011, Favel Parrett’s career was launched with her critically acclaimed debut Past the Shallows. Favel won the ABIA Newcomer of the Year Award in 2012. In her first book for children, Parrett brings us the true story of Wandi, one of Australia’s endangered alpine dingoes.
This book had me instantly hooked, shedding tears from the prologue. Wandi takes you through a wave of emotions, from loss to displacement to hopefulness, with complementary illustrations throughout. These emotions ring true for everyone – whether you’re a dingo or human.
Wandi is taken to a sanctuary, feeling displaced and struggling to make friends in a new and unfamiliar environment. I could relate to this feeling: starting school for the first time, meeting a new group of people, being thrust into foreign environments. But, like Wandi, we learn to adjust, adapt, and build up strength as we find our tribe and find ourselves.
It was enjoyable to see the dynamic between dingoes and humans. With Wandi being based on a true story, the novel gives hope for a better future for dingoes everywhere. At the end of the book, there’s a Q&A with Kevin D. Newman, a Sanctuary Supervisor and Wandi’s very good human friend at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary and Research Centre, and a Q&A with Parrett.
Told with wonder and heart, Wandi is a children’s literary classic in the making. If you loved Penguin Bloom, Storm Boy and The Call of the Wild, then this book will be right up your alley. I recommend it for readers aged 7+.
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