For hundreds of years, wolves roamed Yellowstone, the world's first national park. But by 1926, humans had killed all the wolves in the area. Catherine Barr (Invisible Nature), a former Greenpeace International campaigner, tells the incredible story of the impact wolves had on the region and the devastation that resulted from their removal. Her meticulously researched narrative (first published in the U.K. as Fourteen Wolves) is accompanied by beautifully detailed, realistic nature illustrations by Jenni Desmond (Migration). This partnership produces a rich nonfiction picture book that perfectly highlights the interconnectedness of the natural world. Wolves were prime targets for hunters in the early 20th century because they provided a valuable fur pelt and killed cattle. Little by little, hunters culled the wolf population, with the support of the government. But Yellowstone began to see dramatic, negative environmental changes after park rangers killed the last wolf. Humans realized they had made a mistake and needed to correct it: 14 Canadian wolves were brought to Yellowstone to repopulate the park.
Barr breaks down the stages of the wolves' reintroduction as well as the myriad positive impacts the wolves' return had across the ecosphere of Yellowstone. Barr deftly illuminates the circle of life reforming in Yellowstone while Desmond's dynamic, mixed-media images include texture, light and color that give all the animals--especially the wolves--a lifelike appearance. Her brushstrokes evoke a sense of movement, and her hues visually relate the temperatures of the changing seasons. While The Wolves of Yellowstone is a picture book, any lover of nature and science should find plenty to absorb within it. --Jen Forbus, freelancer