ABSTRACT
By condemning the European and Euro-American extermination of the wolf and stressing the need to preserve and restore the wolf to former habitats, authors of contemporary works encourage their young readers to do better by doing differently than past generations have done. In There's a Wolf in the Classroom! Weide and Tucker raise Koani to be a diplomat wolf, using Koani to help teach young people about wolves by giving them an opportunity to see and interact with a real wolf. Their experience with a wolf was intended to diminish children's fears and dismantle its evil reputation. Indeed, at the end of the book, Koani's success is measured by a girl's reaction to an anti-wolf agitator. At a town meeting in Montana, a girl speaks up for Koani, thereby silencing an adult protestor's voice. Informational books like this one align children with wolves while empowering young people to stand against closed minded attitudes.
