Dreaming of Wolves: Adventures in the Carpathian Mountains of Transylvania (Revised and Updated)
An extraordinary portrait of the lives of wolves, the researchers who study them, and the rustic highlanders who share their landscape in the mysterious wilds of Transylvania.
Here we take an enchanting journey, tracking wolves through the deep snows and dark forests of Romania, where "Old Europe" still hangs on, hardly touched by modern trends or discovered by western travelers. Guided with humor, insight, and vivid description, we make a memorable trek, fending off belligerent shepherd dogs and foul weather to discover history, legend, and myth: Ancient "wolf-warriors" (Dacians), colorful Romani (Gypsies), legendary vampires (Dracula) and more.
As we contemplate the benefits of wilderness, the joys of self-discovery, and the nature of time and consciousness, we are also entertained with 32 pages of black and white photographs.
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"Life flashes past many eyes: resident, tourist, voyageur, even those of wolves. Dreaming of Wolves provides introspection through the eyes of a wolf. Alan's journey explores an inward look at mid-life crises, personal feeling, community economics, ethnic survival, cultural bias, and national politics while trying to [understand the life] of a pack of Romanian wolves. To know life, his life, the author travels to a remote, foreign setting seeking knowledge about wolves, and learns about himself. Yes, it is a travelogue, a personal adventure, but it is also a narrative explaining wolf ecology and behavior versus rural cultural integrity and history. Read it to understand wolves and to understand people at the delicate interface were a few wolves exist almost secretively next to rural people still attached to their lands and agricultural practices. I recommend Alan's work not only as a natural history reference but for showing that we can exist with wild animals even as planet earth approaches an overflowing human population."
-- Dr. James C. Halfpenny, President, A Naturalist's World and author of Yellowstone Wolves in the Wild, Field Guide to Mammal Tracking in North America, Winter: An Ecological Handbook
"[Provides] rare insight into the behavior of wolves, as well as a close-up look at life in the backcountry and small towns of the Carpathian Mountains. The author's experiences tracking wolves, combined with the people he meets and his descriptions of the locale, make for a compelling and invigorating story. Sparks writes well, even eloquently at times... A thoroughly enjoyable read for animal lovers and explorers alike."
-- Kirkus Discoveries
"This is indeed [a] book written by an incredible observer of character and landscape, a sensitive listener and ultimately a passionate conservationist... Buy it, read it carefully. It's a book I will not be letting anyone borrow. It has a heart and a very powerful one..."
-- Wolf Print Magazine (UK)
