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Dear Wild Child: You Carry Your Home Inside You

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From authors Wallace J. Nichols and Wallace Grayce Nichols and illustrator Drew Beckmeyer, Dear Wild Child is a picture book inspired by a letter from a father to his daughter about wildfire, loss, and learning that we carry our homes inside us wherever we go.

In the shade of ancient redwood trees by a creek not far from the ocean, a father builds a house for his newborn daughter, where she grows up wild and strong in their coastal canyon home. When a wildfire takes back their beloved house, he writes his now-grown daughter a letter telling her it’s gone.

Inspired by the real letter the author wrote his daughter, this poignant story—written together by father and daughter—joyfully declares that a home is more than just wood and stone; it is made of love and can never be taken away. You carry home with you wherever you go.

“The art echoes the text’s emphasis on beauty rather than loss . . . In the event’s aftermath, the affecting story’s tone remains openhearted, concluding with sentiments that encourage resilience and reflect on the nature of home.” — Publishers Weekly

Includes a note from the authors on climate change

32 pages, Hardcover

Published August 9, 2022

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About the author

Wallace J. Nichols

10 books40 followers
Creating useful words.

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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
Profile Image for Kailey (Luminous Libro).
3,156 reviews484 followers
November 15, 2022
A family build their home in the forest, a beautiful home where their daughter can grow up surrounded by the beauty of the woods and the wind. They have wonderful times together in their house, playing under the trees, fishing in the streams, and playing music with friends. One night a lightning storm starts a forest fire that burns down their beloved home, and the father comforts his child with the knowledge that they carry their home and all their memories inside them forever.

This is such a heartwarming book! It's bittersweet in the end, since the family has lost their home, but it's also full of hope, because they know that what truly matters can never be lost. They have their family safe and all their memories of their beloved home. I love the beautiful picture of growing up strong and resilient like the trees.

The illustrations are really interesting. I like the crayon art style and the bright colors! The designs are sometimes chaotic and it's difficult to tell what is happening because the page looks so cluttered with different scenes. The art work definitely captures the emotions of the story!

I love that this is a true story! It makes it so meaningful to know that this is the real experience of a family, and that they still have hope and joy in the face of devastating loss.


Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.
Profile Image for Nicole M. Hewitt.
Author 1 book347 followers
September 21, 2022
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction

This lovely letter from a father to a daughter after a wildfire destroys their family home celebrates our bonds with nature. It tells the tale of a girl who grows up surrounded by the beauty and majesty of the outdoors in a home filled with the love and dreams of her parents. And the book shows how home is not a place, but the essence of what makes us who we are. While the physical structure that the girl grew up in is gone, the letter assures her that it will always hold a place in her heart. The book’s illustrations are captivating, capturing the freedom of a childhood spent adventuring in the outdoors. This book will encourage kids to explore the natural world around them and to do their very best to help preserve it.

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via Media Masters Publicity so I could provide an honest review. No compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
Profile Image for K.L. Bernard.
Author 1 book21 followers
September 15, 2022
This heartfelt story is a letter written to a daughter in her first year of college. It speaks of the house she grew up in and all of its wonderful memories. The house had been built in the forest within the redwoods and filled with books, guitars, seashells, feathers, and a piano. The house had withstood droughts, floods, and earthquakes. But one night a lightning storm created a forest fire that took their home back.

This beautifully illustrated book is about taking home with you wherever you go even if it no longer exists or you no longer live there. Parents, teachers, and caregivers can use this story to discuss the destruction of wildfires or even to share when it’s time to move out and make a home of their own. The back pages share the author’s story and where readers can learn more and help victims of forest fires.
Profile Image for Stacie.
1,606 reviews103 followers
January 25, 2023
A letter from a dad to his daughter is heartfelt, full of beautiful memories, tragic and yet hopeful. A couple awaits their baby daughter, building a home in the middle of a redwood forest and near the ocean. When the daughter is born, they fill the house with books, seashells, pets, and many wonderful memories.

After collecting years of memories, with lots of joy in the home, and a house that has survived floods and earthquakes an amazing lighting storm hits. A lightning strike starts a fire that sweeps through the forest and destroys their precious home. All that remained is the chimney.

I found this beautiful story to be an emotional one for me. Our husband and I remodeled every room of our first home while our boys were little. We made many memories there and brought our boys home from the hospital there, but the flood destroyed our home (5 years after we moved away), and knowing that we can never go back and remind ourselves of the memories made there hurts my heart. But, what I loved about this book is in this letter from a dad to his daughter reminds all of us that we carry our home with us wherever we go.

A letter to the reader at the end of the book shares how the daughter was away at college when the fire hit their home and his family barely escaped. The author shares how the weather is becoming less predictable and more severe and how humans need to learn from the forest and maybe learn to live a little differently.
79 reviews
January 1, 2023
From a grown-up's point of view, this is a beautiful book. It captures the love and loss and purpose of a house beautifully. The illustrations aren't my favorite style, but that's ok. For those who were near to the fire, it is especially meaningful.

However I don't know that I'd buy this book and read it to my child unless my child ever experienced something similar and needed help processing it, because I remember that as I child, I found many books that grown-ups thought were "meaningful" and "profound" to be just plain sad and sometimes also hopelessly boring. I didn't want to read books that were "realistic" if that supposed "realism" made the world feel despairing and pointless instead of hopeful and safe. I wanted books to give me courage. Most of all, I wanted book time to be a special and happy time. I didn't like sad books. And as far as I can tell, this is totally normal for a kid of the age who would be reading a picture book. So I'm worried this book is destined to be mostly read by adults who survived the fire and not kids. But I guess that's ok. Who says adults can't read picture books?
Profile Image for Elizabeth Hobbs Voss.
11 reviews4 followers
September 14, 2022
This picture book, “Dear Wild Child: You Carry Your Home Inside You,” was inspired by a letter a father wrote to comfort his daughter after her childhood home burned down. She had just left home for college.
The story is in the father’s voice. It begins “We built your house around you when you were still growing inside your mother, in the shade of ancient redwood trees, by a creek, not far from the ocean.”
He tells his daughter that her home helped make her the person she is today. It was built strong of hardwood and stone. The family filled it with books, guitars, a piano, pets, and memories.
She learned to walk there, and listened to sweet lullabies. The wind sang though the canyon, the trees, and the chimney. The fireplace crackled and kept them warm.
In the canyon, she played. She discovered salamanders, swimming holes and fairy houses. She collected buckets of plums, heart-shaped rocks, and crawdads. Bright stars peeked through the trees and owls called.
They had sleepovers, holiday gatherings, parties, and weddings in the house. They entertained many visitors and had delicious dinners there.
The house withstood droughts, floods, and earthquakes. Then a lightening storm blew through the canyon. It started a wildfire.
“The unstoppable flames roared over the ridges and climbed the tall trees,” writes the father. “The fire took back your house. I wish I could have protected it. But I couldn’t and I didn’t.”
But he tells his daughter, “Your house served its original purpose. You are healthy and strong because of your home. It grew you.
“The house might be gone, but you will carry your home with you wherever you go. You are my wild child.”
The colorful illustrations bring life to the book. Their colored marker style appeals to children.
At the back of the book, the author Wallace J. Nichols tells about the fire. He says climate change is making weather less predictable and more extreme. We will need to become resilient and more creative.
Profile Image for Beth.
3,005 reviews218 followers
August 24, 2022
A father's poetic lament to his daughter over the loss of their family home they built to a wildfire. The author's note at the end is a perfect thesis to the book: "The climate is changing. Weather is becoming less predictable and more extreme. We will lose what we love. And to fix what's broken, we will all need to become resilient and more empathetic, collaborative, and creative."
3 reviews
May 10, 2023
For anyone who experienced the California wildfires, this heartfelt story will especially resonate but its lessons can apply to any loss. That it is a true story of a father writing to his daughter, is touching and uplifting. I especially loved the illustrations that spoke without words and the very clever cover artistry that expressed it all so perfectly.
Profile Image for Emily Haage.
421 reviews3 followers
September 12, 2023
Beautiful illustrations, poetic text. Better as a one-on-one read. Well-suited to sharing with children directly affected by wildfires and those who are curious/worried/etc. about fire.
Profile Image for Robert Marsh.
Author 22 books18 followers
November 15, 2023
Wow. Beautiful book. A letter from father to daughter, about loss and carrying the past with us. Puts a lump in the throat.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews

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