The Invisible Wild

“Van De Car intersperses Hawaiian folktales, climate change issues, facts about lava and rainforest habitats, and other informative details throughout this emotion-driven novel. Sensorial prose additionally highlights the protagonist’s struggles navigating Hilo’s high-stakes mission alongside personal challenges relating to cultural identity.”–Publishers Weekly

“Debut YA author Van De Car’s immersive narrative weaves together issues of identity and authenticity, Native Hawaiian beliefs, environmentalism, and the inequities of economic power and development with a strong sense of place…Magically real and hopeful.”

–Kirkus Reviews“The Invisible Wild touches so many of the strings that are tied to the heart of Hawaiʻi, readers feel welcomed into our homes, to hear the stories as we learned them from our elders and asked to consider some of the implications of progress in such special places.”–Malia Maunakea, author of Lei and the Fire Goddess“An exciting adventure that explores the bitter sweetness of growing up and the grief of seeing living land under threat.”–School Library Journal“Forgotten worlds, the kanaka maoli, the Menehune, reclaimed memories, a cursed boy in the woods, and a looming property development combine in an unforgettable tale of the Hawaii that was and the friction of the Hawaii that could be. At times hopeful, then heartbreaking, The Invisible Wild weaves the conflict between myth and modern life and the loyalties we owe ourselves and nature. An immersive, spell-binding page turner, The Invisible Wild breathes with the love of the land and her people, and calls to the ancestral stories that refuse to be left behind and the untamed parts that live in all of us.”–Natasha Deen, award-winning author of In the Key of Nira Ghani“Heartfelt and moving, The Invisible Wild shows a side of Hawai’i rarely seen by outsiders. Van De Car seamlessly weaves a story about Hawaiian sovereignty, the complexities of kanaka identity, and environmental activism with humor, urgency, and both romance and adventure. A poignant exploration of forgiveness and making things right from an authentic Hawaiian lens.”–Keala Kendall, author of How Far I’ll Go (Moana’s Twisted Tale)“Intensely lush atmospheric descriptions create an immersive and sensory read… Intersecting topics of nativeness and heritage, self-identification, tourism, environmental justice, folklore, and more are buoyed by a bit of romance, and the sum of all the parts manages to be both starkly realistic and surprisingly hopeful.”–Booklist, starred review“Van De Car’s wondrous and magical YA debut cherishes Hawai’i’s everyday, developing a stunning atmosphere through creation chants, a pālila’s “bubbly warble,” mist “like the breath of an unseen dragon,” black lava roadsides, and heaps of haupia (a coconut dessert). The Invisible Wild is altogether enthralling, hopeful, and great fun.“–Shelf Awareness