Jacob Grey

Ferals Book Review

by Jacob Grey

I give this book 3.5 crow talkers out of 5. What? I liked it...



Ferals Alternate Book Cover

First of all, let's start with the book cover. The cover above is absolutely beautiful (the one above.) I say its one of my favorite covers of all time. The color palette is tight, the typography plays into the scene and helps create an effective ambiance. In fact, it was the cover that attracted me to the book initially.

To the left is the alternate cover. I assume the show more intent here was to try to target the Young Adult demographic, and make the story feel bigger. It, too, is nice, but I prefer the original cover.

Ferals is a book about a boy named Caw (I know you caught the crow reference there...) who was abandoned by his parents at a young age, and raised by the crows. Talking to them is nothing out of the ordinary to him as that is all he has known. He and the crows live in the "nest," and they scavenge the city for food and their upkeep.

The inciting incident initially starts as a bully scene, but then turns into a scenario where some escaped convicts of the worst kind show up, and Caw takes note. He ends up intervening, something he doesn't typically do, and saves the day initially. The first theme brought up is whether his loyalties are to the people, or the crows. The crows end up supporting him, but his interference tangles him in this adventure with the escaped convicts. He'll end up finding out that they are more similar to him than he thought.

Caw partners with the Prison Warden's daughter and they try to hunt down the criminals while protecting their families, and learning about Caw's past, and parents in the process. The world becomes a bigger place as Caw learns he has more to do with all of it than he had originally thought.

The writing in this book is pretty good. This twists and turns were okay, but the writing was good. There is a slightly creepy element to Jacob Grey's style, and I like that. I didn't feel it ever really went overboard, but it was darker, for sure.

Overall, Ferals is a good book. The pacing was smooth—moved along nicer than most books I've read recently—the writing was clean, and ambiance was moody and palpable. The characters surrounding the protagonists were okay. I wouldn't call them flat, but they were just what they needed to be to move things along. All in all, I think I will be reading book #2 when it comes out. On that note, I got a look at its cover today, and it turned out pretty good, too! show less

I received this book from Goodreads in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked this book. It is fast-passed with a lot of adventure. It is kind of a cross between Harry Potter and His Dark Materials.

The characters were simple yet interesting. The concept was fantastic. And the writing was descriptive without being bogged down by too many adjectives.

Violent at some points, this is overall a good middle school read. My only complaint is the nonchalant stance on homelessness used in the show more book. While homelessness is not shown as glamorous by any means, I think a lot of issues surrounding it are taken lightly and often made into jokes (hygiene, table manners).

A cool story overall and a strong start to a promising series. show less

My nephews will really enjoy this book. This is a great thing as I picked this book up for them in mind. However, I did not really see too much similarity to the Batman reference. I thought that this book was in its own way different from Batman and this is a good thing. I like different.

Caw is someone that the readers can connect with. He is the underdog that turns into the hero. Plus, he has a cool ability to be able to communicate with crows like a horse whisperer.in addition, I liked show more the names of the characters in this book. Besides Caw there is Milky, Crumb, Quaker, and Spinning Man to name a few. The characters in this book are not boring. show less

This novel will stretch your imagination as dark forces must be battled or death will prevail.

Caw has always been able to talk to crows, but he doesn’t remember much about his past. He remembers his parents sending him away through a high window. All he really remembers is life with the crows. He lives in a nest with three crows, knowing nothing about life. He can’t read; he doesn’t know any social customs; but, he wants to meet a girl that he is strangely drawn to. Come to discover, show more he is a feral, a person who can communicate with animals. Each feral has one animal with whom he/she communicates.

Lydia is intrigued by the boy watching her. She doesn’t seem to mind that he stinks badly. She’s determined to be his friend despite her parents feeling differently. As she discovers Caw’s secret, she leaves home to help him fight some criminals who escaped the prison her father runs. They almost killed her and her father, but Caw saved them. These criminals have abilities Lydia and Caw discover. Like Caw, they are ferals. Therefore, the police can’t fight them. With the help of other ferals and Lydia’s bravery (or stupidity if you so believe), Caw has to find the Spinning Man who brought darkness to the feral town of Blackstone.

I found the novel a little boring quite frankly. It’s an interesting idea, but I don’t think the author is able to pull the reader into the story. Once you put the book down, I don’t see anyone rushing to pick it back up. Perhaps I am mistaken and this is a perfect novel for 6th graders. Let me know what y’all think! show less