Sunday Books & Reviews
WOLVES AT THE DOOR
By Steve Watkins
Published by Scholastic Press (December 3, 2024)
Hardcover $18.99
Reviewed by Drew Gallagher
The end of year is always ripe for reflection upon the year soon to be past. Personally, I felt a great sense of achievement in writing a humor column every Sunday while also being the second most prolific book reviewer for The Advance. Then I compared my year’s output to that of local author Steve Watkins and swore at my inadequacy.
In 2025, Watkins has written two splendid books, published Pie and Chai (an online magazine featuring excellent writing from many local writers), and also took time to help take down the Spotsylvania County Schools’ Superintendent by reporting on the misplacement and disposal of books banned by the School Board that were supposed to be saved and preserved. Pretty prolific and important stuff.
One of those splendid books, Wolves at the Door, was just published and is generating a number of starred reviews. Wolves at the Door is being advertised for 8- to 12-year-olds, but I think it serves a better purpose with a slightly older readership. It is also a compelling read for the adults amongst us who believe that some of the best fiction we ever encountered was before we could legally drive ourselves to the library.
Wolves at the Door is the tale of two German sisters, Asta and Pieta, during the end games of World War II. The Nazi defeat is all but assured as Russia’s Red Army converges on Germany with a level of hatred that spares no lives, including those of children. The sisters and their mother have had no word from their father, who was drafted into the German army years before, which likely portends the worst, but the sisters remain hopeful that he will return to save them.
As the war pushes the family from their hometown of Konigsberg to the farm of their grandparents, it becomes obvious that fleeing from the encroaching frontlines is the only option but where and how to go remain problematic because neighboring countries, torn apart by the Blitzkrieg, are not feeling very charitable toward Germans.
Watkins, however, imbues the struggles of Asta and Pieta with a humanity that defies judgement against the atrocities committed at the behest of the Third Reich. The thoughts of reciprocity fade away when one realizes that these are the innocents--displaced children forced to survive in a war and a world that long ago stopped caring about them.
“We press on, wagon-less, pony-less. More and more people, refugees, keep passing us on their way to Gotenhafen. I want to shout at them, warn them, but warn them what? That our ship was sunk by Soviet torpedoes? That they should turn back and go home?...
“But if there is death in either direction—in both directions—how do you choose?”
Few stories survive of the Wolfskinder (German children, orphaned during World War II); after all, they were children who were forgotten while they were still alive. Who, but themselves, was left to remember? Wolves at the Door is a tribute to their struggles and their lives which, in many cases, ended far too young.
Drew Gallagher is a freelance writer residing in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He is the second-most-prolific book reviewer and first video book reviewer in the 136-year history of the Free Lance-Star Newspaper. He aspires to be the second-most-prolific book reviewer in the history of FXBG Advance.
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