Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

The Wolves in the Walls
The Wolves in the Walls
The Wolves in the Walls
Audiobook17 minutes

The Wolves in the Walls

Written by Neil Gaiman

Narrated by Neil Gaiman

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

4.5/5

()

About this audiobook

Lucy hears sneaking, creeping,
crumpling noises
coming from inside
the walls.

She is sure there are
wolves living in
the walls
of her house.

LanguageEnglish
PublisherHarperCollins
Release dateOct 6, 2009
ISBN9780061987373
The Wolves in the Walls
Author

Neil Gaiman

NEIL GAIMAN was awarded the Newbery and Carnegie Medals for The Graveyard Book. His other books for younger readers include Coraline (which was made into an Academy-Award-nominated film) and The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish (which wasn’t). Born in England, he has won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards. You can learn more at www.mousecircus.com.

More audiobooks from Neil Gaiman

Related to The Wolves in the Walls

Related audiobooks

Children's Comics & Graphic Novels For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for The Wolves in the Walls

Rating: 4.428969359331476 out of 5 stars
4.5/5

359 ratings54 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This may be the most terrifying thing I've ever read.

    2 people found this helpful

  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Very enjoyable story of a brave and resourceful girl. The illustrations, with their mix of photos and drawings, were... odd. Odd and creepy and a little disturbing- so they fit excellently with the story. I like Gaiman a lot, and he didn't let me down here. I think it might be too scary for a bedtime story the first time, but after that? I can see it being demanded over and over!

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Just a good weird little story.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    question is this book like coraline? HUH hUH hUh HUh HUH
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This was an adorable short listen. Cute and light hearted.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Gaiman always turns the mundane into the magical. His narration is so easy to listen to.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    a delightful children’s book. gaiman is unrivaled in his stories
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Perfectly poetic ending! By far one of the best and shortest short stories I’ve had the joy of reading in what seems like an eternity, as these little nuggets of priceless perfection are scattered few and far between among the mountains of proverbial “diamonds in the rough.” If there ever was a “God among men,” it would be Neil Gaiman. He has a god-like ability with words and he uses his legendary storytelling abilities to craft common words into some of the most intricately detailed and downright magical world of art in the minds of his readers. He truly is as timeless as The Timeless from his Sandman.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I absolutely love this story, I think it's great for everyone to read it even though you may think it has a spooky cover, the story is actually very nice.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Lucy is scared, she hears wolves in the walls but her family doesn't believe her. Each one suggests what it might be and then says anyways if it was wolves "then it's all over". Lucy has no idea what "it" is. But then one night the wolves do come out of the walls and the whole family runs down the hill and camps out for a few night wondering where they should move to. Lucy is the now only one brave enough to coax her family into getting their own house back.Wonderful story, probably a bit too scary for very young children but olders will find it just the right amount of scary without being frightening. And it's funny too! I was surprised when I saw the illustrator was Dave McKean because I hated his work in The Graveyard Book, and many of my readers agreed with me. This book is obviously done in McKean's signature style. Full colour pages and a wonderful mixed-media art with collage, painting, sketching and slightly Picasso-like faces. Highly recommended!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Its Weird, but its great and funny, i would recommend this book to people who are 7+ years old!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I read this for the "A Book With The Letter W In The Title" part of my 2020 reading challenge. It was really unique, I liked how the parents were so accepting that they didn't live there anymore.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This was great, but utterly bizarre! I feel like I need to see if Neil has talked about it in order to be settled. Still, it’s Neil Gaiman, so it was brilliant anyway - especially because he narrated it.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Fun story to read with my nephew, Right before bed. He’s 7 yrs. old and thinks he likes scary stories. Lol! This one is pretty good.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I think Gaiman's best work is his children's literature. They are a sure thing for my reading tastes. Creative, unusual, and inventive stories that don't read down to any level reader. Anyone can enjoy this picture book!
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    No, no, no. That was just stupid. Two stars instead of one because at least it was very short, and I only have to wish I had several minutes of my life back instead of hours.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    In this reverse Goldilocks tale, Lucy hears something that she believes to be wolves living in her family home's walls. I get the impression that, like the Narnia Lucy, she is the littlest member of her family. She is certainly treated that way by other family members. I would use this book to explore family dynamics and also hypotheses development. Of course, one can't help but sympathize with Lucy's bravery and her learning curve. The next time Lucy notices something curious in her walls, she discusses it with her puppet pig and decides to let everyone find out "soon enough"
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    If you like Gaiman or McKean's art you need to pick this up, but be careful in deiced whether or not to read it you young kids. The story is good but could scare young children.This book is has New York Times Best Illustrated Books Award and has been put on as a successful play by the National Theatre of Scotland.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    When the wolves come out of the walls, it is up to Lucy to convince her family that they are capable of saving their home. “Everybody knows that when the wolves come out of the walls, it’s all over.” These are the cryptic words repeated by Lucy‘s mother, father, and brother in Neil Gaiman’s picture book, The Wolves in the Walls. Lucy is certain that the noises—“hustiling, bustling, crinkling, crackling”-- she hears emanating from the walls of her house are wolves, but the rest of her family insists that it is something normal like rats or bats. After all, if the wolves were to come out of the walls, it would all be over—even though no one can clarify what “it” is. Frustrated, Lucy talks to her beloved pig puppet about the wolves, and her family is eventually forced to believe her when the wolves come bounding out of the walls one dark night. Terrified, the family flees to the garden, but when Lucy realizes she’s forgotten her pig puppet she bravely ventures back to the house by herself where she finds the wolves making a mess of everything from her mother’s homemade jams to Lucy’s socks. When Lucy returns to the garden she bravely rallies her family members --who are all ready to move elsewhere--to re-take their home. With a combination of characters and situations that feel both real as well as quirky and off-beat, this picture book stands out from the pack. Dave McKean’s illustrations that combine actual photographs with drawing perfectly emphasize the overall sense of a mingling of reality and fantasy that characterizes this book. Lucy is a plucky heroine, and certain scenes—such as going back to the house for a beloved toy—create emotions that children, as well as adults who remember a cherished toy from their childhood, will appreciate. A tuba playing father, jam making mother, and video game playing brother make up Lucy’s slightly unconventional family and add defining characteristics to the supporting characters. While the story is dark, it is not so much so that it is scary, making The Wolves in the Walls appealing to a wide age-range of children. It would also make a fun read-aloud and would be ideal for asking children to project what will happen in future pages or to create their own stories about what else might be living in the walls. Recommended for grades 2-6.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    What a quirky, nonsensical, scary-in-a-cute-way book by Gaiman! (Okay, so I'm not surprised!) I was intrigued by the thought of the wolves in the walls, and the pull-and-tug between the humans and the wolves in the house. I was fascinated by the illustrations, as well.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    An Idealic family of four,a mother,father,son,and daughter. All is well untill the girl hear wolves in the wall. of course she is not believed by her family. Until they cone out the walls.The story takes a turn for the weird when the family moved into the walls. It is very orginal and imaginative tale.I was not a fan of the dark color similar to the moive Nightmare Before Christmas type of illustrations. The book may become tiresome to read out loud. The story definately is humorous.As an assignment 1.I would have the students draw a picutres of wolves. I could have the students tell me about the wovles they drew. 2.I could intoduce the students to words that have sound, Onomatopoeia
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Who can resist a visually interesting book with a strong heroine, a couple of good morals (don't believe everything you're told, and standing up for yourself will drive away bullies), plus a gratuitous mention of the Queen of Melanesia? Oh, and both parents are present but the mother is the primary wage-earner. Downside: Scary ravenous wolves come out of the walls. My daughter loved it starting at 2.5 (she found it by mistake!) but we spend a lot of time discussing the fact that wolves can only live in big, old walls, not little, new walls like the ones in our house.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I was dubious about reading this to my kids (aged five and eight) until I'd had a good look at it myself, but since I'm a rabid Gaiman fan I bought it anyway, thinking I could always leave it until they were a bit older. No way. The eight-year-old looked through it and started laughing, and so I read it out loud to both... and the five-year-old has wanted it at bedtime for weeks. Bottom line: judge for yourself if your kids will be scared, but if they can handle it, they will love it. It's a fun story, and not just for kids!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Lucy knows that there are wolves in the walls of her house, and as all of her family humoursly says, "When the wolves come out... Its all over!" Wonder what "it" is is among many playful questions about reality posed in this book. When the wolves do indeed come out, they eat all the ice cream and party in Lucy's house.This book makes kids laugh, is great for getting moderately creepy and has very interesting illustrations in a collage style. Great for showing new forms of illustration and for encouraging kids to tell weird, creepy stories, if that is their thing.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Lucy warns her parents and little brother that there are wolves in the walls of their house, but they each insist that the noise she is hearing is made by mice, rats, or bats. Then the wolves come out of the walls, and it is all over. Or is it? Fortunately, Lucy has to return to get her beloved pig-puppet and, at her prompting, her family also return. Now they are living in the walls...One of a number of children's book collaborations between author Neil Gaiman and illustrator Dave McKean - other titles include Coraline, The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish and Crazy Hair - The Wolves in the Walls features an engrossing and somewhat creepy story, and mixed media artwork that perfectly captures the atmospheric thrills of Gaiman's text. I really enjoyed this one, and (as always) appreciated Gaiman's understated sense of humor. The text here is quite extensive for a picture-book, making this more of an illustrated short story, so I'd recommend this one more to middle-grade readers, than to the younger children who usually consume picture-books. Needless to say, I'd also recommend it to Gaiman and McKean fans.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    It is far too quiet in Lucy's house at night, but then, she hears a howling, yowling, bumping, and thumping, and then the wolves came out of the walls.Lucy must overcome her fears and brave the horrors of her family's house that has been taken over by messy, partying wolves. A heroine in typical Neil Gaiman style, Lucy cleverly defeats the wolves and takes her house back in the end, despite the wolves' strength, tenacity, ability to speak, and propensity for beating high video game scores. The children's stories written by Neil Gaiman are not for the faint of heart or wolf-fearing among us. Illustrator Dave McKean paints Gaiman's imaginative fancies into masterpieces of adventure like none you have ever seen. The artist uses a combination of pencil, paper, paint, and digital design to develop the dark-toned images iconic of his works.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    A creepy children's story.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The wolves in the walls is not a children's literature masterpiece. But it is a very interesting book. The book presents a delightfully Gaimanesque off-tilt story. But what makes the book better than average is the art by McKean. He again uses his mixed technique to bring moments of wonderment to the reader. Many times I was left wondering whether I was looking at a photograph or a painting (or where the painting stopped and the photograph started)...
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Cute silly story, love Neil Gaiman as usual, both his stories and his voice.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I'd read the book before, but when I saw that Neil Gaiman did the audio book I had to read it again. You miss Dave McKean's artwork with the audio book, buts it's still a fun story. :)