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Children

Lóbez

By Antonio Yánez Casal, Ánxeles Ferrer (ilustracións)

About this book

Anything could happen at that time when animals spoke: that a leirón was confined, that a bore laughed at the wolf, that a wolf was scared of blood... The same could happen to a wolf child, like the protagonist of this story -- he had to set off on a difficult journey because he could not howl.

This book was the winner of the 2nd Premio Meiga Moira de Literatura Infantil e Xuvenil in 2006.

Book fragment

It was just before night was over, when Lóbez fell from a tree and landed in front of a female wild boar with six piglets running after her. The wild boar and Lóbez both got scared because for a wild boar a wolf is a terrible enemy, and for a lonely wolf with little experience a boar feeding her piglets has to be treated with utmost respect.

Lóbez mumbled and the boar grunted, and at that moment the six piglets started grunting too, and the noise was unbearable. The piglets also tried to run away, as hiding from the wolf is the second lesson they learnt, but when they saw their mother stop and examine the wolf, they stopped in confusion because imitating her was their first lesson.

—How timely! –she said, surprising Lóbez.

And she told her kids to come closer to the wolf.

—Class? –she asked them.

—Mammals –the six piglets replied in unison.

—Order?

—Carnivorous.

Lóbez tried to speed up as much as he could, he almost started running, but those bristly beings followed him without any problem.

—Family? –the pig continued asking.

—Canidae.

“It is impossible! This cannot be true! It has to be a nightmare,” Lóbez told himself.

—Scientific name?

—Canis lupus signatus –the six little buggers continued.