Will Hobbs and his literary works

Will Hobbs was born on August 22, 1947, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His parents are Greg and Mary Hobbs. He is the middle of five children, with three brothers and a sister. The Hobbs were an Air Force family and moved around frequently: they lived in Pennsylvania, Panama, Virginia, Arkansas, Northern California, Southern California, and Texas. During his childhood, he developed a love of nature and backpacking that continues to this day. In the fourth grade, Will grew to love reading and stories, which provided the foundation for his writing career many years later. Will Hobbs entered Stanford University in 1965. He graduated with his BA in 1969 and achieved his MA in 1971. He taught Reading and English for seventeen years, three of which were at the high school level. Hobbs started writing full time in 1990 and is a member of the Author's Guild. He married his wife, Jean Loftus, in 1972. The two currently reside in Colorado and have done so for many years

Hobbs primarily writes adventure stories for children and young adult readers. His outdoor stories appeal to both boys and girls. Hobbs has readers discovering wild places, sharing adventures with people from varied backgrounds, and exploring how to make important choices in their own lives. Hobbs draws from his personal life experiences for story ideas. Reading subjects of personal interest also provide inspiration for his works.

Hobbs has written fifteen novels and two picture books. Following is a complete listing of his works with brief plot summaries.

Wild Man Island: On the last day of a sea kayaking trip in southeast Alaska, fourteen-year-old Andy Galloway paddles away from the group. His heart tells him he must visit the place where his archeologist father died trying to solve the mystery of the first Americans. A gale sweeps Andy far across the strait, where he swims onto Admiralty Island, an immense wilderness of forests, rain, and bears. A survival tale becomes much more as Andy encounters a dog running with wolves and then a man toting a stone-tipped spear. The wild man vanishes into the forest, but the dog reappears and leads Andy to the mouth of a cave, where secrets upon secrets begin to unfold. Running for his life, Andy retreats deep into the cave, where danger, suspense, and discovery await

Leaving Protection: When sixteen-year-old Robbie Daniels leaves his home in Port Protection for the nearby fishing town of Craig, king salmon season is less than forty-eight hours away from starting without him. The few skippers who can afford to hire help have already found their deckhands, and time is running out on Robbie's dream of fishing the open ocean for kings. He can hardly believe his good fortune when legendary fisherman Tor Torsen unexpectedly hires him on. Working on Tor's beautiful troller, catching king salmon from dawn till dusk, Robbie is living his dream -- until he discovers his mysterious captain's dark intentions. Tor is not only fishing; he's searching along the coastline for historic metal plaques buried by early Russian explorers laying claim to Alaska. When Robbie learns how valuable these possession plaques are, he fears he may already know too much to survive. Tor's wrath and a violent storm at sea put Robbie's courage and wits to the ultimate test.

Jackie's Wild Seattle: How do you rescue a coyote trapped in the elevator of a Seattle office building? How do you save an injured seal at the bottom of a cliff with the tide coming in? Fourteen-year-old Shannon Young, visiting from New Jersey, is about to find out. Shannon and her little brother, Cody, are in for a summer of breathless, sometimes reckless, often hilarious adventure visiting their Uncle Neal, who drives an ambulance for a wildlife rescue center called JACKIE'S WILD SEATTLE. When Uncle Neal is injured by a red-tailed hawk, Shannon summons her courage and starts rescuing the animals herself. Jackie, the director of the center, believes in "the circle of healing," and helps troubled young people by letting them work with the animals. Shannon becomes interested in Tyler, an appealing but withdrawn teenager who is fascinated by a bear cub and an injured eagle. Uncle Neal warns her that Tyler is a ticking time bomb, but Shannon discovers her uncle is keeping secrets of his own. Cody, meanwhile, is having nightmares about the events of September 11, and is sure some new disaster is about to strike. Everything is uncertain, and home is so very far away.

River Thunder: "They're calling it a flood -- highest water anyone's ever seen in the Grand Canyon! it's all over the national news!" Jessie and her companions from Downriver have returned to the Grand Canyon, brimming with anticipation about running the big rapids: Granite, Hermit, Crystal, and Lava Falls. For Jessie it's a dream come true -- a chance to row her own raft down the Colorado River. But the river has its own surprises in store. For Troy, this trip means a chance to prove himself, to make up for past mistakes. In the end, the river itself will be the ultimate test. it's going to take all of them pulling together -- Jessie, Troy, Adam, Star, Rita and Pug -- if they're to survive the thundering water and the powerful emotions the river unleashes.

Kokopelli's Flute: The magic had always been there. 13-year-old Tepary Jones could feel it. Fascinated by Picture House, the ancient cliff dwelling near his parents' Seed Farm, he knew this would be the perfect place to view his first total eclipse of the moon. Waiting for the eclipse to begin, Tep admired the mysterious pictures chipped into the cliff walls by the Ancient Ones. His favorites were two of Kokopelli, the legendary humpbacked flute player. Suddenly Tep's dog Dusty heard noises -- robbers with shovels were digging in the red sandstone, destroying the ancient ruins and stealing the priceless treasures! In their haste the vandals left behind a small, polished bone flute. Something told Tep he shouldn't put the flute to his lips, but he did....

Bearstone: In this award-winning adventure set along Colorado's Continental Divide, 14-year-old Cloyd Atcitty is sent to work for an old rancher named Walter. While hiking in the cliffs above Walter's ranch, Cloyd discovers a turquoise bearstone in an ancient burial. Knowing that his people, the Utes, have a special relationship with bears, he decides to keep the small stone in hopes it will bring him strength. Cloyd is thrilled when Walter proposes that the two of them go up into the mountains together to reopen the old man's gold mine, the Pride of the West. Riding his horse far from their camp, Cloyd comes face-to-face with the last grizzly bear in Colorado, only to find that there's a trophy hunter stalking the bear. In the story's exciting climax, Cloyd tries to warn the bear and to save Walter, who has been injured in a mining explosion.

Beardance: As this high-adventure sequel to Bearstone opens, Cloyd Atcitty and his rancher friend Walter are riding once more into the mountains, this time chasing the old man's dream of finding a lost Spanish gold mine. But the report of a mother grizzly with cubs sets Cloyd dreaming of grizzlies, not gold. Up in the high country Cloyd meets a remarkable woman named Ursa, a grizzly expert who is out searching for the bears. Together they find them, the last grizzlies in Colorado. But when the cubs are orphaned in an accident, it's up to Cloyd, staying on alone in the mountains, to keep them alive.

The Maze: Just fourteen, Rick Walker is alone, on the run, and desperate. Stowing away in the back of a truck, he suddenly finds himself at a dead end, out in the middle of nowhere. The Maze. In this surreal landscape of stark redrock spires and deep sandstone canyons, Rick stumbles into the remote camp of Lon Peregrino, a bird biologist who is releasing fledgling California condors back into the wild. Intrigued by the endangered condors and the strange bearded man dedicated to saving them, Rick decides to stay on. When two men with a vicious dog drive up in a battered old Humvee, Rick discovers that Lon and his birds are in grave danger. In the story's heart-stopping climax, Rick risks his own life flying Lon's hang-glider in a dramatic attempt to save his friend.

Jason's Gold: "Gold!" Jason shouted at the top of his lungs. "Read all about it! Gold discovered in the Yukon!" Within hours of hearing the thrilling news, 15-year-old Jason Hawthorn jumps a train for Seattle, stows away on a ship bound for the gold fields, and joins thousands of fellow prospectors attempting the difficult journey to the Klondike. The Dead Horse Trail and the infamous Chilkoot Pass stand between him and the perilous last leg of his journey. Can he make it 500 miles down the Yukon River before freeze-up? As Jason battles his way north, he meets a Canadian girl named Jamie and is befriended by a 21-year-old writer named Jack London, but his only constant companion is King, a husky he rescues from a madman. Together they'll face moose, bears, and the terrors of the subarctic winter.

Down the Yukon: Amid the shouts and the cheers and the splashing of oars, it was pandemonium. "Nome or bust!" Jason yelled. In the shadow of the Arctic Circle, Dawson City is burning, changing forever the lives of thousands in the Klondike gold fields. All the talk is of Nome, nearly two thousand miles away, where gold has been discovered in the beach sands. Jason Hawthorn is itching to join the new rush. He and his brothers have been cheated out of their sawmill, and Jason has vowed to buy it back. A race to Nome has been announced, with a $20,000 prize. Jason's partner in his canoe is the girl he loves, Jamie Dunavant, freshly returned from the States as she promised she would. The Great Race across Alaska will be a grueling test for the two of them as they face the hazards of the Yukon River, two very dangerous men, and the terrors of the open sea. Only their combined skills, courage, and mutual devotion can pull them through.

The Big Wander: 14-year-old Clay Lancaster has come all the way from Seattle to Monument Valley in Arizona, and he doesn't give up easily. He and his older brother Mike are searching for their uncle, who disappeared into this vast and colorful land Clay has seen only in movies. When Clay's brother gives up the search and heads home, Clay stays by himself, working at a remote trading post. On a tip about his uncle, he takes off with only a burro for company into the wild redrock canyons of the Navajo reservation. What awaits him is the adventure of a lifetime among the Navajos and across the Colorado into Utah, where his uncle has been trying to save the last wild horses of the Escalante Mountains. Clay meets a girl named Sarah and together they try to rescue his uncle from a desperate situation.

Changes in Latitude: On vacation in Mexico, 16-year-old Travis learns about endangered sea turtles and tries to figure out how he fits into his own family, which he comes to realize is as "endangered" as the turtles. "I'm the one with the headphones and the shades," Travis starts out, "trailing behind like I'm only loosely affiliated with these people. I used to think I was the center of the universe, but by the end of the week down there I found out this wasn't the case. I found out something about what's really important and what's not. I guess that's why I'm writing this down, to let you know the price I paid and let you draw your own conclusions."

Ghost Canoe: After a sailing ship breaks up on the rocks off Washington's storm-tossed Cape Flattery, Nathan MacAllister, the 14-year-old son of the lighthouse keeper, refuses to believe the authorities, who say there were no survivors. Unexplained footprints on a desolate beach, a theft at the trading post, and glimpses of a wild "hairy man" convince Nathan that someone is hiding in the remote sea caves along the coast. With his new friend, Lighthouse George, a fisherman from the famed Makah whaling tribe, Nathan paddles the fierce waters of the Pacific -- fishing, hunting seals, searching for clues. Alone in the forest, Nathan discovers a ghostly canoe and a skeleton that may unlock this mystery of ancient treasure, betrayal... And murder.

Far North: From the window of a small float plane, 15-year-old Gabe Rogers is getting his first look at Canada's magnificent Northwest Territories with Raymond Providence, his roommate from boarding school. Below is the spectacular Nahanni River: wall-to-wall whitewater racing between sheer cliffs and plunging over Virginia Falls. The pilot sets the plane down on the lake-like surface of the upper river for a closer look at the thundering falls. Suddenly the engine quits. The only sound is a dull roar downstream, as the Cessna drifts helplessly toward the falls.... With the brutal subarctic winter fast approaching, Gabe and Raymond soon find themselves stranded in Deadmen Valley. Trapped in a frozen world of moose, wolves, and bears, two boys from vastly different cultures come to depend on each other for their very survival.

Downriver: No adults, no permit, and no river map. 15-year-old Jessie and her six companions from Discovery Unlimited, an outdoor education program she's been sent to by her father, "borrow" the company's rafting gear and take off down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon on their own. Floating beneath sheer red walls, camping on white sand beaches, exploring caves and waterfalls, Jessie and the others are at first having the time of their lives. Pursued by helicopters, they boldly push on into the black-walled inner gorge, the heart of the Grand Canyon, only to encounter huge rapids, bone-chilling rain, injuries, and conflict within the group. What will be the consequences of their reckless adventure?

Beardream: When spring arrives in the mountains, the bears emerge from their dens -- all but one. The Great Bear thinks he is awake, but he is still dreaming. In a village below the mountains, a boy everyone calls Short Tail is concerned that no one has seen the Great Bear. Is he still sleeping? If he doesn't wake, he will starve. Short Tail climbs into the mountains to find the Great Bear and slips into a dream of his own, a magical dream in which he finds the Great One. In return for his thoughtfulness and respect, Short Tail is shown a marvelous secret, the bears' dance, to be shared with all of his people.

Howling Hill: Hanni the wolf pup is playing happily with her family by the river when suddenly all that is familiar slips away from her: She is swept downstream clinging to a log, until her entire pack disappears from sight. Now, for the first time, Hanni must face perilous waters, roaring falls, and chilling winds alone. Once ashore, how will she ever find her way through the vast snowy landscape to return home again? With courage, persistence, and a little help from a bear who can't sleep, Hanni finds her way back, discovering along the way her voice within. This delightful adventure brings a touch of warmth to the cold, far north, where wolves sing pure and deep at the top of Howling Hill.