Into the Wild

Into the Wild is the first novel in the ongoing middle-grade fantasy series Warriors, which is comprised of multiple six-book sagas. The series chronicles the adventures of four anthropomorphic feral cat clans as they face survival and other challenges against an intricate political and mythological backdrop. The cats in the series belong to a complex social structure and are bound by a warrior code that dictates their actions; loyalty to code and clan are core themes in many of the sagas. Warriors is written by Erin Hunter, the pseudonym shared by a team of authors; initially, this team comprised English writers Vicky Holmes, Cherith Baldry, and Kate Cary but has since expanded. Erin Hunter is also the author of other middle-grade animal fantasy series, including Seekers, Survivors, Bravelands, and Bamboo Kingdom.

Into the Wild is the first novel in the first Warriors saga, The Prophecies Begin. It was published by HarperCollins in 2003 to largely positive critical reviews; the novel was later nominated for the Young Reader’s Choice Award in 2006. Into the Wild follows Firepaw, a house cat-turned-warrior who discovers the difficulties of survival and the rewards of fellowship after he leaves his domestic life behind to become a warrior of ThunderClan.