William McCleery’s Wolf Story - Fast, Funny, Perfect for Bedtime

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What a gem!

What a find!

What a smashing read-aloud!

If you take up this 1947 book about a father, his smart five-year old son Michael and Michael's best friend Stefan ... well, you won't be able to put it down.

This is a book that simply yearns to be read aloud in the appreciate company of a little pirate of your own or in the company of a band of ragamuffins.

It works really well as a children's book for silent reading, but it truly sparkles as a read-aloud!

This fabulous addition to the New York Review Children's Collection simply scores on all fronts.

Here we have an enthralling story, within a witty yarn and both of them progress hand in hand until a charming conclusion.

Anything Can Happen In A Story

     A boy's story is the best that is ever told. 
     Charles Dickens 

"Once upon a time a man was putting his boy to bed and the boy asked for a story."

The man tries to save himself by retelling Goldilocks, but, of course, this attempt is rejected immediately by his son.

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"No, no," said the boy. "A new story."

Once again the father fails in his attempts to conjure up a story with harmless animals, because his persistent little son rejects all attempts to keep the fierce wolf out ... and a Wolf Story it is.

What follows is a double strand of complementing stories that intertwine all the way over the course of several days.

Sample page from Wolf story

One moment we are reading about Michael, Stefan and Michael's dad and how they go together to Fort Tryon Park, swim at Jones Beach, wait until the car is fixed in the garage.

The next moment the story delves back into the yarn about cunning wolf Waldo and his plans to capture Rainbow the hen, while trying to avoid discovery by the hen's owners - the Tractorwheel family.

The book is a rambunctious read-aloud that will turn on all the synapses in children's brains, as they try follow the lifelike story-in-a-story.

And it wasn't only my kids who howled with laughter while listening to the book.

In addition to laughing, my kids were enthralled with the realistic story-telling and the matter-of-fact tone that made it very accessible.

In fact, the book was so captivating that we read it in two days .. with my twins captivated all throughout.

The humor is so lightweight and pervasive making the Wolf Story one of the top read-alouds in our library.

One thing I like about it is its subtle, intelligent humor.

Humor is a very powerful tool in your parental tool box. 

It can be applied strategically in many situations. 

Beware not to use it to mock your little ones. Instead you should use it more for self-deprecating purposes, to chip away at your own pedestal. 

Remember, growing up is a process during which children gradually see that the pedestal that they held you on is no longer that tall and no longer that wide. 

Humor also helps you to use irony in indirect ways to give advice to your kids, by not pointing out some of their weaknesses - rather making a little bit of fun that makes them notice some of their own inconsistencies or foibles. 

Why am I going into this tirade about humor, you are probably asking yourselves right now?

Well, a subtle and a deeper sense of humor is developed like a muscle. 

You need practice and you need exposure to masters of the art. 

And Wolf Story can help. 

The book's author William McCleery was a Broadway playwright, which goes a long way to explaining why this book reads aloud so well.

Treat your kids and yourself to a couple of nights of much needed family warmth and worldly humor.

They simply don't write books like this any more.

Happy reading,

Read Aloud Dad

Where to buy

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Further resources for parents (opens in new window – not affiliate links):

• NYRB News – WSJ & NPR coverage recap: Pull-quotes + note about Scott Simon’s Weekend Edition chat with Michael McCleery
• B&N Reads – Essay on wolves in kidlit + Wolf Story spotlight: Short editorial that situates the book among “wolf” favorites
• Shelf Love – in-depth parent review: Why the father–son banter is the real star; read-aloud notes
• Critical counterpoint – “Western Corner of the Castle”: A dissenting take on plot/ending—useful balance for parents