Fire and Ice

September 1, 2003
Gr 5 Up-After having left his life as a kittypet, apprentice Firepaw of the ThunderClan has been given his warrior name of Fireheart and his first mission-to find the WindClan and assist them back to their traditional hunting grounds. While he and his friend Graystripe are successful in their quest, Fireheart knows that trouble is brewing, and he isn't sure that the ThunderClan's deputy can be trusted. As events escalate, a warrior from RiverClan is accidentally killed, an apprentice is injured, and Fireheart brings into the Clan a kittypet kitten-his nephew-without thinking of the consequences. Finally, he must decide who to trust and who to fight. Readers not familiar with the first book may find this one hard to follow. Hunter provides a directory that tells which cats are in which clans, but it is cumbersome to flip back and forth. The characterizations of the animals are somewhat flat, although it is possible to tell them apart, and the plot's twists and turns seem mapped out and predictable. Librarians with a readership for Into the Wild (HarperCollins, 2003) will probably want this volume; others can pass.-Lisa Prolman, Greenfield Public Library, MA

Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2003
Gr. 6-9. Firepaw, the former kittypet who became a ThunderClan warrior in " Into the Wild" [BKL F 15 03], faces danger and treachery within and without his clan as he struggles with his identity. Because some clan members refuse to accept him, he feels like an outsider. Also, it appears that ShadowClan and RiverClan are forming an alliance to usurp land belonging to the displaced WindClan. ThunderClan's leader sends Firepaw and his friend Graystripe to lead WindClan back to its home, but intrigue among the clans and among individuals within them spells trouble for Firepaw. Characters remain true to their feline natures, adding to the plausibility of events in this tension-filled story. Readers will be happy to learn that another episode is in the works.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2003
When Rusty--later renamed Firepaw and then Fireheart--leaves his life as a house pet to join one of the clans of wild cats that live in the woods, he must overcome the disdain that the other ThunderClan cats feel for pets and prove his worth as a warrior and as a friend. Filled with details about warrior life and populated with interesting characters, the series may draw in some Redwall readers. [Review covers these Warriors titles: "Fire and Ice" and "Into the Wild". ]

(Copyright 2003 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)