Benji Zeb is a Ravenous Werewolf

The sophomore slump is a real thing for writers. Second books are always harder, because there is an expectation that a writer not only knows what they are doing but that they will surpass their first piece. In reality, each new work serves to teach writers how very little we know about anything. Plus, if a writer is truly pushing themselves, they will be trying something new each time, not rehashing the same old stuff. Figuring all that out, allowing oneself the grace to breathe and explore, is often the actual struggle of submitting a second book for publication. It’s quite different than all the manuscripts that came before, that were not published. I approached Sydney Taylor Honor recipient Deke Moulton’s second book, Benji Zeb is a Ravenous Werewolf, with this in mind. However, I actually enjoyed the read even more than I did their prior book (Don’t Want To Be Your Monster). And found it extremely fitting that anxiety was a featured topic.

The premise that the tribe of Benjamin’s blessing in Birchat Yaakov (the blessings Jaacob gives to each of his sons in the bible) refers to Benjamin being an actual wolf rather than a metaphor for his prowess in battle, is certainly far fetched, but once we get past that suspension of disbelief the results are intriguing. Thirteen year old Benji Zeb has always known he is werewolf, because his family is composed of werewolves that disguise their shape shifting ability by running a wolf sanctuary. They are also unlike traditional werewolves in horror stories – Judaism holds that a werewolf keeps their human mind intact when they shift so these are not necessarily dangerous individuals, and they have control over when they shift rather than being beholden to phases of the moon. I actually found this to be hilarious and delightful. A bunch of werewolves running a werewolf sanctuary in a kibbutz like fashion? Adorable.

However, Benji’s idyllic family life is facing threats from both within and without. His bar mitzvah is approaching and his crushing anxiety is leaving him unable to focus on writing his speech. With everyone expecting him to be perfect, he can’t find the words to tell them about the turmoil in his mind. On top of that, his former best friend at school Caleb, has been acting horrible for months. Worse – Benji catches Caleb’s stepfather and his white supremacist pals hatching a plan to sabotage the sanctuary.

When Caleb shows up at the sanctuary -in wolf form! – Benji has to reconcile his conflicting feelings towards him. He’s still harboring a crush, and sometimes it seems like Caleb is encouraging it, but he also has a stepfather literally trying to destroy Caleb’s family. Nobody will listen to him because they keep telling him to focus on his bar mitzvah speech and Caleb is kind of freaked out at discovering he’s a werewolf (it’s a recessive trait). There were definitely moments when I just wanted to yell at everyone to shut up and listen to each other. I suppose feeling like nobody will listen to you is part of being a teen. Although Benji’s anxiety doesn’t help matters – he can barely get a few words out to his parents. Which means he and Caleb are stuck figuring out a plan together.

Where Benji Zeb really shines for me is the ending. Unlike Moulton’s first book, Benji Zeb, takes things a step further by allowing Benji to see the other side multiple times. He shows great maturity in imagining what things might be like for Claeb and his step father. Caleb is given a real and true voice and the step father is not a faceless evil, but rather someone who has made some bad choices after facing disappointment. Resolution is reached not by winning a battle, but rather through empathy, understanding and an offer to share. It was beautiful and nuanced in a way that younger readers could still understand.

I imagine after the success of Don’t Want to be your Monster, it was daunting to write a follow up. I love that it features anxiety, because that’s how I feel every time I send something out into the world never knowing how it will be received by people who liked my prior pieces, or if I’ll get any feedback at all. So I’d like to provide this bit of reassurance: as a second book, Benji Zeb is a Ravenous Werewolf shows a lot of growth and a willingness to explore new themes. I look forward to seeing where Moulton goes next – be it a new magical creature, or a new age group, or genre.

Note: BookishlyJewish received an ARC from the publisher after we asked for one.

---

Find It: Goodreads | Bookshop | Amazon