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Aqsa's Reviews > A Wolf Called Romeo
A Wolf Called Romeo
by
by
Buddy Read with my best friend Saman.
For the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complete than ours, they move finished and complete, gifted with the extension of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings, they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time.
I’ve wanted to read this ever since I watched that video below. To be honest, it wasn’t what I expected it to be. I imagined it being a collection of only Romeo and his visits and his story with the people of Juneau. It was more than that and I’m glad. I’d recommend seeing that video below though it might contain one big spoiler-the only real spoiler. But it was the how I found this book and fell in love with it. I loved most parts and I was angry at the rest. Human cruelty towards animals is so unreasonable.
This is the true story of Romeo, a wild black wolf, who came to the human world bearing only friendship and good intentions. He affected many lives and he still is. Nick Jans writes magnificently and gracefully about the encounters he and his fellow citizens had with the wolf over the years. You almost get lost in it. Plus, there are pictures at the end of every chapter taking us to that time and place. It might not have been so believable for most people if not for the sheer reality of it all.
Other than encounters with Romeo and his life with the dogs and people of Juneau, the human behavior and attitude towards wild animals and specifically wolves have been explained in detail and over different time periods and generations, thus helping us understand the true danger and the chances that were against Romeo’s survival near humans. (view spoiler) Moreover, the author paints a picture about the general behavior of wolves in wild life whether in packs or in solitude. Nick Jans answers the questions about Romeo’s first appearance, his history and his choice to stay for not several days but years as best he could. Though there will always be room for uncertainties and the unknown, it was very impressive. He takes in every side and talks from every angle.
Overall, a complete mixture of every info possible and all the emotions for you.
Highly Recommended.
Video Link:
https://youtu.be/eie7WJF0aY0
My Thoughts as I Read:
Chapter 1:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 3:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 4:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 5:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 6:
(view spoiler)
Chapters 7-8:
(view spoiler)
Chapters 9-10:
(view spoiler)
Chapters 11-12:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 13-14:
(view spoiler)
For the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complete than ours, they move finished and complete, gifted with the extension of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings, they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time.
I’ve wanted to read this ever since I watched that video below. To be honest, it wasn’t what I expected it to be. I imagined it being a collection of only Romeo and his visits and his story with the people of Juneau. It was more than that and I’m glad. I’d recommend seeing that video below though it might contain one big spoiler-the only real spoiler. But it was the how I found this book and fell in love with it. I loved most parts and I was angry at the rest. Human cruelty towards animals is so unreasonable.
This is the true story of Romeo, a wild black wolf, who came to the human world bearing only friendship and good intentions. He affected many lives and he still is. Nick Jans writes magnificently and gracefully about the encounters he and his fellow citizens had with the wolf over the years. You almost get lost in it. Plus, there are pictures at the end of every chapter taking us to that time and place. It might not have been so believable for most people if not for the sheer reality of it all.
Other than encounters with Romeo and his life with the dogs and people of Juneau, the human behavior and attitude towards wild animals and specifically wolves have been explained in detail and over different time periods and generations, thus helping us understand the true danger and the chances that were against Romeo’s survival near humans. (view spoiler) Moreover, the author paints a picture about the general behavior of wolves in wild life whether in packs or in solitude. Nick Jans answers the questions about Romeo’s first appearance, his history and his choice to stay for not several days but years as best he could. Though there will always be room for uncertainties and the unknown, it was very impressive. He takes in every side and talks from every angle.
Overall, a complete mixture of every info possible and all the emotions for you.
Highly Recommended.
Video Link:
https://youtu.be/eie7WJF0aY0
My Thoughts as I Read:
Chapter 1:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 3:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 4:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 5:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 6:
(view spoiler)
Chapters 7-8:
(view spoiler)
Chapters 9-10:
(view spoiler)
Chapters 11-12:
(view spoiler)
Chapter 13-14:
(view spoiler)
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Reading Progress
April 3, 2018
– Shelved as:
to-read
April 3, 2018
– Shelved
September 22, 2018
– Shelved as:
tbr-soon
December 4, 2018
–
Started Reading
December 5, 2018
–
12.0%
"Pg 29
Ex-governor Walter Hickel, decrying the
interference of wolf advocates (many of them Outsiders) in the issue two
decades ago, put it best, with this unintentionally comical, landmark
statement: “You can’t just let nature run wild.”
Award of the century!!!
I hate it!"
Ex-governor Walter Hickel, decrying the
interference of wolf advocates (many of them Outsiders) in the issue two
decades ago, put it best, with this unintentionally comical, landmark
statement: “You can’t just let nature run wild.”
Award of the century!!!
I hate it!"
December 5, 2018
–
16.0%
"Pg 39
Whatever passed that day, we have a token to call us back. Years later, that
yellow, fist-sized orb that the wolf stole and eventually dropped rests among Sherrie’s keepsakes, bearing the puncture of a single tooth. Next to it, a tuft of Dakotah’s tail hair, and a hand-sized paw print from the wolf, cast in plaster.
We hold what little we have, as if it were enough.
I do too :’("
Whatever passed that day, we have a token to call us back. Years later, that
yellow, fist-sized orb that the wolf stole and eventually dropped rests among Sherrie’s keepsakes, bearing the puncture of a single tooth. Next to it, a tuft of Dakotah’s tail hair, and a hand-sized paw print from the wolf, cast in plaster.
We hold what little we have, as if it were enough.
I do too :’("
December 5, 2018
–
17.0%
"Pg 41
The most likely explanation was the simplest: Mother Nature loves to roll the dice, and out of the nearly infinite genetic combinations possible came this one-of-a-kind wolf—not the wolf we expected, maybe, but a wolf all the same.
"
The most likely explanation was the simplest: Mother Nature loves to roll the dice, and out of the nearly infinite genetic combinations possible came this one-of-a-kind wolf—not the wolf we expected, maybe, but a wolf all the same.
"
December 5, 2018
–
17.0%
"Pg 42
Wolves and people have never mixed well, except, paradoxically, when they have. It’s a weird, dysfunctional union, considering that we invited the shadow of our fear into our homes and came to call it our best friend—all the while maintaining an ingrained, fearful distrust, sometimes verging on hatred, of its free-ranging forebear that lives beyond our will.
"
Wolves and people have never mixed well, except, paradoxically, when they have. It’s a weird, dysfunctional union, considering that we invited the shadow of our fear into our homes and came to call it our best friend—all the while maintaining an ingrained, fearful distrust, sometimes verging on hatred, of its free-ranging forebear that lives beyond our will.
"
December 5, 2018
–
23.0%
"Pg 54
I wish we could have explained why to him. All the more heartache, when care wears the mask of cruelty."
I wish we could have explained why to him. All the more heartache, when care wears the mask of cruelty."
December 5, 2018
–
23.0%
"Pg 56
The mountains glistened white against a deep, cirrus-flecked sky; miles of ski tracks and walking trails beckoned. And there waited the black wolf, like a computergenerated effect. Surely we’d blink, and the image would shimmer and fade. But the wolf was real as the steam of his breath and his palm-sized prints etched into the snow, alive as the strange amber fire in his eyes."
The mountains glistened white against a deep, cirrus-flecked sky; miles of ski tracks and walking trails beckoned. And there waited the black wolf, like a computergenerated effect. Surely we’d blink, and the image would shimmer and fade. But the wolf was real as the steam of his breath and his palm-sized prints etched into the snow, alive as the strange amber fire in his eyes."
December 5, 2018
–
29.0%
"Pg 69
Regardless of where the black wolf had come from, we could all agree on
one thing. There was nothing to match this spectacle anywhere on the planet. No pack interaction, it was true, but still a wolf, right there, more accessible and dependable in his appearances than anyone had ever heard of."
Regardless of where the black wolf had come from, we could all agree on
one thing. There was nothing to match this spectacle anywhere on the planet. No pack interaction, it was true, but still a wolf, right there, more accessible and dependable in his appearances than anyone had ever heard of."
December 5, 2018
–
30.0%
"Pg 71
OMG, when he said “There lay Romeo,” I almost had a stroke! I know how this ended, but no surprises before that, please. I now feel like continuing my retelling of White Fang by Anna Paluchowska.
"
OMG, when he said “There lay Romeo,” I almost had a stroke! I know how this ended, but no surprises before that, please. I now feel like continuing my retelling of White Fang by Anna Paluchowska.
"
December 8, 2018
–
36.0%
"Pg 86
But she died alone that night, without us to comfort her.
Why doesn’t matter, even if we knew. Loss lies beyond cause or effect, a hard, hollow country all to itself. There was nothing to do but travel its expanse for a time, bearing the weight of grief"
But she died alone that night, without us to comfort her.
Why doesn’t matter, even if we knew. Loss lies beyond cause or effect, a hard, hollow country all to itself. There was nothing to do but travel its expanse for a time, bearing the weight of grief"
December 8, 2018
–
36.0%
"Pg 86
But the dog that helped give the wolf a name was gone, as if she’d never been. A few of us cried, and the world moved on. And through that world, a dark shape still moved, carving out a life at the edge of us."
But the dog that helped give the wolf a name was gone, as if she’d never been. A few of us cried, and the world moved on. And through that world, a dark shape still moved, carving out a life at the edge of us."
December 8, 2018
–
42.0%
"Pg 100
So, a wolf and dog, friends? From a dispassionate, left-brain point of view, far more difficult to dismiss than accept the notion. All that’s left to debate is the nature and depth of what we don’t know."
So, a wolf and dog, friends? From a dispassionate, left-brain point of view, far more difficult to dismiss than accept the notion. All that’s left to debate is the nature and depth of what we don’t know."
December 8, 2018
–
50.0%
"Pg 119
Don’t you love a book so much that when you take a break from it, or finish it, you don’t really want to read anything else lest you should ruin the experience you just had?"
Don’t you love a book so much that when you take a break from it, or finish it, you don’t really want to read anything else lest you should ruin the experience you just had?"
December 10, 2018
–
53.0%
"Pg 124
But one bright summer day in 2006, all that luck and grace came to an end.
Part of me had known it had always been just a matter of time, but foreknowledge in such matters offers more curse than comfort."
But one bright summer day in 2006, all that luck and grace came to an end.
Part of me had known it had always been just a matter of time, but foreknowledge in such matters offers more curse than comfort."
December 10, 2018
–
59.0%
"Pg 142
I recall looking back as he dwindled to a dark point against the snow,
as if for the last time. I watched hard, hoping to remember.
This is so good. The writing. There sure are times when you focus on every detail so you might not forget. Taking a snapshot through your eyes and mind. Saving it."
I recall looking back as he dwindled to a dark point against the snow,
as if for the last time. I watched hard, hoping to remember.
This is so good. The writing. There sure are times when you focus on every detail so you might not forget. Taking a snapshot through your eyes and mind. Saving it."
December 10, 2018
–
66.0%
"Pg 157
We asked ourselves, and sometimes each other, if he would one day simply vanish into the land, or if we would discover how and where his end came. And if we could choose to know or not, which would we rather?
I think it’s better to know. You can’t move on if you never know.
You keep thinking about their safety and it haunts us."
We asked ourselves, and sometimes each other, if he would one day simply vanish into the land, or if we would discover how and where his end came. And if we could choose to know or not, which would we rather?
I think it’s better to know. You can’t move on if you never know.
You keep thinking about their safety and it haunts us."
December 10, 2018
–
69.0%
"Pg 166
All we could claim to know is what he did and where he went when we were watching; the balance of his life would remain wrapped in mystery. And that was the part of the wolf I loved best: not what I knew, but all that I didn’t."
All we could claim to know is what he did and where he went when we were watching; the balance of his life would remain wrapped in mystery. And that was the part of the wolf I loved best: not what I knew, but all that I didn’t."
December 10, 2018
–
74.0%
"Pg 177
In death as in life, the wolf that lived both beyond and among us would prove a magnet for human wrangles."
In death as in life, the wolf that lived both beyond and among us would prove a magnet for human wrangles."
December 10, 2018
–
Finished Reading
December 11, 2018
–
75.0%
"Pg 180
He had no idea that his aura of invincibility was about to implode.
I hope he got caught!"
He had no idea that his aura of invincibility was about to implode.
I hope he got caught!"
December 11, 2018
–
78.0%
"Pg 188
but what about justice?
Even a child would know there was none, and never would be. We might as well have trusted some clumsy machine to restore life to a flower, reattach each petal, breathe life into its wilted stem."
but what about justice?
Even a child would know there was none, and never would be. We might as well have trusted some clumsy machine to restore life to a flower, reattach each petal, breathe life into its wilted stem."
December 11, 2018
–
79.0%
"Pg 189
We gathered there, speaking in low tones, taking turns to stand near, brush a hand along his back, peer into sightless eyes, and whisper farewell. Though we’d known the wolf was gone, now we felt the ache of forever."
We gathered there, speaking in low tones, taking turns to stand near, brush a hand along his back, peer into sightless eyes, and whisper farewell. Though we’d known the wolf was gone, now we felt the ache of forever."
December 11, 2018
–
79.0%
"Pg 189
That was the best the state could manage: it provided justice to neither wolf, nor dead bears, nor us—just to itself, on its own terms. The system had taken care of itself; it was up to us to do the same."
That was the best the state could manage: it provided justice to neither wolf, nor dead bears, nor us—just to itself, on its own terms. The system had taken care of itself; it was up to us to do the same."
December 11, 2018
–
79.0%
"
We endured the head shaking, pontificating, and outright ridicule of those who didn’t know or understand, and never would. Just a wolf, they said, as if he were a rusted-out truck or a pile of rotting wood. Move on.
That's the one of the worst things they can say."
We endured the head shaking, pontificating, and outright ridicule of those who didn’t know or understand, and never would. Just a wolf, they said, as if he were a rusted-out truck or a pile of rotting wood. Move on.
That's the one of the worst things they can say."
December 11, 2018
–
79.0%
"Pg 190
But regardless of where or how he died, one essential fact seems clear:
the black wolf wasn’t killed by love, but by its determined, malignant inverse."
But regardless of where or how he died, one essential fact seems clear:
the black wolf wasn’t killed by love, but by its determined, malignant inverse."
December 11, 2018
–
80.0%
"Pg 192
Years from now, we’ll tell this story: Once upon a time, there was a wolf called Romeo. Together, we watch him trot across the lake and fade into twilight. And we remember."
Years from now, we’ll tell this story: Once upon a time, there was a wolf called Romeo. Together, we watch him trot across the lake and fade into twilight. And we remember."
December 11, 2018
– Shelved as:
favorites
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It's a little different from the title.
JV wrote: "A wonderful review, Aqsa! 😃"Thank you very much JV :)
Your review is too long it is love like the romeo is you beautifully explained it . ❤❤❤❤❤ Axaa your recommendation is best .(view spoiler)
@ I'm glad you loved it Saman! It wouldn't be fun if you didn't. ❤❤(view spoiler)
I'm gonna say thanks again. Shukran ya habibiti 😋😘
Hahaaa no thanks again otherwise i ll literally kill you .😝😝😝❤❤😂
You can try😋
Hahaaaa i ll other things too just meet me once 😜😜👻
Romeo reminds me of a wolf in a movie alpha that you recommended too .❤❤
This is why I've tried to find it for a while now :)