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Julie's Wolf Pack By Jean Craighead George
Julie's Wolf Pack is the exciting third volume in Jean Craighead George's epic about Julie and her arctic wolf pack, told this time from the point of view of the wolves themselves. This guide is intended to elicit discussion about the many fascinating themes and perspectives featured in this rich novel, such as
survival, the natural environment, cultural tradition, and much more. Life in the arctic tundra couldn't be more compelling and dramatic.
Julie's Wolf Pack resumes the exciting tales of arctic adventure that began
with the Newbery Medal-winning Julie of the Wolves and continued with Julie. In this captivating sequel, Julie has successfully saved her wolves from the Arctic hunters and returned home to her family. Meanwhile, on the tundra, the lives of the wolves are once again threatened. This time, Julie's beloved wolves face
disease and famine. Kapu, the young, inexperienced leader of the pack, must find a way to protect the wolves while defending his leadership position from rival wolves who are waiting to ambush him and take over the pack. The survival of Julie's wolves depends upon Kapu's strength and his ability to maintain his leadership post and unite his pack.
"Kids will relish slipping into the four-footed world."
"Drawing upon her knowledge of wolf behavior, Eskimo culture, and Alaska, George continues the story of Kapu, the splendid male pup Julie nursed back to life in Julie of the Wolves. Those who have enjoyed the story thus far will want
to read this latest encounter."
"With astounding intimacy... the drama succeeds because of George's complete command of the wolves' world."
"[George] has captured the essence of nature in the purest sense and provided the reader a glimpse of the awesomeness of the instincts wolves possess." 1. How are responsibilities divided among wolves in the pack? Discuss the various roles each wolf plays to maintain survival in the unrelenting arctic tundra. How do these roles help to prove that wolves are social animals similar to humans? 2. Why does Julie refuse to return Nutik to Sweet Fur Amy (page 99)? What disadvantages does Uqaq suffer from being raised for so long by humans? Why do you think Uqaq refuses milk to her own pups? 3. How do wolves communicate? Why is it so important for wolf packs to maintain strict watch over their territorial borders? 4. What are Kapu's responsibilities as a leader? How does he prove his leadership qualities throughout the book and demonstrate himself a far better leader than Raw Bones? Do you consider Raw Bones to be a strong wolf or simply a bully? Discuss the reasons for your opinion. 5. Peter and Julie discuss the fact that wolves are often very effective at preventing the spread of rabies, sometimes even without inoculations. How is Kapu able to stave off the threat of rabies in his own pack? 6. How does Sweet Fur Amy take control of the pack to become the new Alpha? Do you feel she is a strong leader? How does her leadership style differ from Kapu's? 7. Peter Sugluk, Julie's fiancÈe, and Steven Itta discuss modern changes in Eskimo life. Steven states: "The Arctic has gotten very complicated, all right. We cannot live as our ancestors did even if we want to"(page 78). Do you feel this is an accurate statement about Eskimo life based on evidence from the book? Identify some of the Eskimo traditions that the author presents. Why are Julie and Peter unable to marry as soon as they wish? When they do finally wed, what do they do to instill their marriage with a sense of tradition? 8. When you read that Kapu was going to be returned to the wolf pack, how did you think the wolves would react to him? Did you predict that Jean Craighead George would end the story with Kapu and Aaka's reunion and subsequent retreat to the mountains? Do you think the pair will ever return to the pack or will continue living separately? Explain. 9. How do the wolves train their pups to survive and learn their roles in the pack and the tundra environment? Why must the pack challenge its pups to learn hunting and survival skills quickly even if the pups are exposed to dangerous threats? 10. How does reading Julie's Wolf Pack from the unique perspective of the wolves have an impact on the story? How would the story be different
if Julie was the narrator? Discuss how the
stories of the wolves and Julie interweave
and relate to each other.
Jean Craighead George is one of the all-time favorite authors of children's literature. She has published over eighty books that celebrate nature and has brought her love of the wilderness to children all over the world. She lives in Chappaqua, NY.
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