It is The Wilderness and our young character, Oktober Vasylenko, does not like it. The other siblings and his parents do, but he’d rather read about adventures. After all there are monsters, and bugs, and all sorts of stuff. Like The Wilderness itself. It is not a nice creature. Or is it? The father of Oktober tells him that sometimes he too is scared, but that is just what you feel, but bravery is what you do. And in an accident, Oktober is separated from the rest of the Vasylenko family and here is where he learns how wonderfully wild the wilderness is. 
The story, which is also illustrated by Steve McCarthy, is just fun, funny, and fabulous. It took me a second or two to get into things as it was running a bit towards the typical format, but it is saved quickly and keeps the modern tone but also adds a classically classic feel as well. And it has a way of feeling fresh. This is probably because the character of The Wilderness comes alive by becoming a character of the story. This making the wild and nature a person is also not new, but again, is clever and fun, so it is a new direction. Even the end pages are fun. The humor is delightful.
Technically you could see twelve stories (after all there are a lot of children in the family), or you could even just have a few more about Oktober (as he is the different one) but I am not a huge fan of the idea. I do not want to know what adventures he is on, just that he is doing them both in a book and outdoors with his friend The Wilderness. Due October 2023 read via an online reader copy.
