''Running Wild'' is a children's novel by Michael Morpurgo first published in 2009. It recounts the adventures of a boy who has to survive in the Indonesian jungle after being rescued from a tsunami by an elephant.

Plot summary

''Running Wild'' by Michael Morpurgo starts with a boy, Will Robert, riding an elephant along a beach, whilst on holiday in Indonesia. Will is grieving for his father, Robert, who died in the Iraq War. The elephant, Oona, is in an odd mood that day: her handler mentions that she refused to go into the sea for her usual morning dip. Suddenly, Oona charges off with Will clinging on for dear life. As they ascend a hill, Will witnesses the Boxing Day tsunami obliterating the beach where he had been moments earlier. Will is very sad. Oona heads into the jungle with Will on her back, and Will gradually learns to communicate with her and finds fruit and water enabling him to survive in the wild. He also remembers a long-ago lesson from his father, who taught him how to catch fish from a stream using his clothing as a net. However, Will struggles with biting insects and leeches. One day, there is a standoff between Oona and a tiger, and Will remembers the poem " The Tyger" by William Blake. Saying this poem out loud gives Will courage. This courage is needed when Will is kidnapped by hunters, and finds out about threats to the

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

through trade in exotic pets, animal furs, palm oil and timber. Later Will escapes with the help of a chef, Kaya, who frees them by cutting open their wooden cage, leaving Will and the orangutans to run back into the wild. They wander the rainforest until they run into Oona. Will is over joyed to find Oona and climbs on her back with the orangutans.

Inspiration

The idea for this book came from a newspaper article about Aamber Owen, who was saved from the

2004 tsunami An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Suma ...

by an elephant whom she was riding at the time. Morpurgo had not traced Owen until 2016, and invited her and her family to the opening night of the stage production in London. Morpurgo was also influenced by '' The Jungle Book'' and " The Elephant's Child", his two favourite stories from his childhood.

Reception

Writing in '' the Guardian'', Linda Newbery says: “With its emphasis on animal instincts and social behaviour, ''Running Wild'', part epic adventure, part plea for threatened habitats, will surely rank alongside his best-loved books.”

Stage adaptation

In 2016

Samuel Adamson Samuel Adamson (born 27 November 1969) is an Australian playwright and screenwriter who has lived and worked in the UK since 1991. He was born in Adelaide and lives in London. Career Samuel Adamson's debut play was ''Clocks and Whistles'' at t ...

adapted it for the stage, in a production at the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre.

References

{{Portal, Children's literature 2009 British novels British children's novels Novels by Michael Morpurgo Novels set in Indonesia Novels about survival skills Children's novels about animals 2009 children's books HarperCollins books 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami Fiction set in 2004