#10--Shiver

Bibliographic Information

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. (2009).

Price: $17.99 for hardback

Pages: 400 for hardback

Plot Summary

When she was eleven years old Grace was dragged off her tire swing by wolves that were determined to eat her. However she was saved by a wolf with yellow eyes who then returned her to her home. Ever since that day Grace has been obsessed with the wolves, her wolf in particular who hovers around the edge of her backyard throughout the winter. Fast forward six years to when high school student Jack Culpepper is thought to have been killed by the very same wolf pack. Suddenly, most of the town is up in arms about the wolves with some determined to kill them. Desperate to save her wolf Grace helps stop the hunters in the woods but she is too late as the hunters have already shot her wolf. However when Grace returns to her home, dejected, she discovers a naked, freezing male teenager on her doorstep. She quickly realizes that he is her wolf in human form making the pack of wolves she has watched for so long into werewolves. Once her wolf is healed she learns that his name is Sam and that werewolves shift from human to wolf when the weather turns cold. Grace feels on top of the world as her beloved wolf is now a human making it possible for them to have a relationship together. Unfortunately, this is Sam’s last year as a human and unless they find a way to reverse his lycanthropy Grace will lose Sam forever.

Critical Evaluation

While this is not Maggie Stiefvater’s first book (that honor would go to Lament which was published in 2008) it is not surprising that this is only her third as she has yet to fully master the intensely beautiful descriptive scenes found in her later writing. Additionally, the pacing and characters present in Shiver cannot match those found in her more recent novels The Scorpio Races or The Raven Boys. However, Shiver is not a bad book. As one GoodReads reviewer commented Stiefvater excels in describing the chilling effects of winter on humans and werewolves alike. The reader is always reminded of the cold temperature through multiple descriptive scenes as well as through the temperature listed at the beginning of each chapter. Even the text is a cold, icy blue. Stiefvater also does an excellent job depicting tender moments between Grace and Sam, particularly when he shows her the golden wood and reads poetry to her in the bookshop. She also exhibits a good deal of creativity in her re-imagining of werewolves where temperature affects their shifting instead of lunar cycles.

Still, there is something to be desired in Shiver. While the end of the novel is exciting and fast paced the middle of the novel is rather boring. In essence Shiver tells the tale of a girl and boy who fall in love while the boy struggles to remain human. This is fit into 390 pages which is much too long as readers are constantly subjected to tender scenes between the two protagonists where they confess their feelings for each other again and again and again. Additionally, not all the characters are particularly compelling. Grace seems nice enough but she is rather boring as her only hobbies and interests are wolf watching and reading non-fiction books. Similarly Olivia only cares about photography while Rachel’s interests are unknown unless one counts her obsession with boys. Finally, some of the plot points are left unfinished. For example, throughout the novel Grace is constantly hurt by her parents’ neglect but by the end of the novel she still hasn’t confronted them about their flippant attitude towards her. Hopefully this will be addressed in the next two books in the series. Overall, many readers will find something to enjoy in Shiver however this certainly isn’t Stiefvater’s finest work.

The GoodReads review that mentions Stiefvater’s descriptions of winter is here.

Reader’s Annotation

Werewolf Sam struggles to remain human in order to be with Grace the girl he has loved at a distance for years.

About the Author

Maggie Stiefvater is certainly eclectic both as an author and a person. To date, she has written about undead kings, werewolves, faeries, and a small, non-existent island. When not writing she enjoys drawing with colored pencils and playing the bagpipes. Although she is arguably best known for her Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy she won a Printz honor for The Scorpio Races.

Her name is pronounced: Maggie STEEF-vater (rhymes with water)

To learn more about her visit her website.

Genre

Mystery, Paranormal fiction, Paranormal romance

Readalikes

Linger & Forever by Maggie Stiefvater

·         Sequels to Shiver in the Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy

Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

·         Also about werewolves and romance

Beastly by Alex Flinn

·         About a girl who must love a cursed teen to break the spell placed on him

Tags

Absent parents, bookstores, Michigan, neglectful parents, only child, poetry, romance, werewolves, winter

Awards Won/Lists On

2009—#62 on Amazon’s Best Books of the Year

2009—Amazon’s Best Books of the Month for August

2010—ALA Best Books for Young Adults

2010—ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers

2012—Abraham Lincoln Illinois High School Book Award Nominee

2012—Wyoming Soaring Eagle Nominee

Professional Reviews

Booklist

Publishers Weekly (starred review)

School Library Journal (starred review)

VOYA

Booktalk Ideas

·         Scene where Grace sees her wolf up close for the first time (18-20)

·         You are one of us speech to Grace in golden woods (131-32)

·         Grace’s Parents vs. Sam’s Parent (154)

·         Sam’s poetry reading to Grace (200)

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness

This book could be used to spark discussions on parental responsibilities, anger management, and even the ethics of gun ownership. It could also be used to help teens who feel hurt by their parents’ neglectful attitudes.

Reading Level/Interest Level

Reading Level: 5^th grade

Interest Level: 6^th grade and up

These levels are according to AR Bookfinder

Challenge Issues

This book includes the following potentially controversial elements:

·         Absent parents

·         Falling in love with a wolf

·         Gunshot wound

·         Murder

·         Neglected chidren

·         Nudity

·         Parents attempting to kill their child

·         Profanity

·         Sex scene

·         Somewhat graphic descriptions of human/werewolf shifting

·         Stealing blood from a hospital

·         Teens of the opposite sex sharing a bed

·         Werewolves

Librarians can point out that there are many wonderful elements to this novel including Steifvater’s descriptive scenes and Sam’s chaste attitude towards Grace. Additionally, this book can start great discussions on parental responsibilities. For example, why were the parents of both Grace and Olivia so absent in their lives?

Why Was This Included?

I included this because it was featured in They Suck, They Bite, They Eat, They Kill by Joni Richards Bodart and because I had been meaning to read it for a few years. After I read The Scorpio Races I was amazed at Maggie Stiefvater’s writing skills and told myself I would read all of her books. However, I’ve been reluctant to pick this book up because I’ve heard it described as “Twilight but better”.