Rating: 
Summary: Is this the best animal story ever written?
Review: I would recommend this book to absolutely anyone who loves animals and/or is interested in history and mythology. It is an original fantasy story with a cast of adorable feline characters who, I'm warning you now, you will become very attached to. Young Tag's quest is gripping, exciting, scary and at times heartbreaking. The author clearly knows a lot about cats, both on a practical level (good descriptions of how they see, smell etc) and about their role in history. There are some lovely descriptions which are brilliantly imagined from a cat's viewpoint, and the characters are wonderfully portrayed. (By the time I had finished it, I wanted to take Sealink home!). As I mentioned earlier, you can't help but feel for the characters. Maybe this isn't the book for the more faint-hearted animal lovers as some of the descriptions might prove to be a bit upsetting. But overall, The Wild Road is a beautifully written, involving book which you won't forget. Also, it will change the way you look at the relationship between cats and humans. Quite simply the best book I've ever read!
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Science Fiction Cat Novel Ever
Review: I've always loved fantasy (Redwall, Watership Down, Fire Bringer, Lord of the Rings, the lot) but before I read this book, I'd never really looked into science fiction. Sure, I loved the movie The Matrix, but all those Star Wars and other sci fi books really didn't look interesting. When I picked up the Wild Road, I'd thought it was just a fantasy book. I mean after all, talking cats are generally accociated with fantasy, right? Wrong. The whole plot is based around science, where an evil human is conducting scientific experiments on cats and breeding a line to create the Golden Cat, which will give him access to the Wild Roads, ancient energy highways that cats and other animals use to travel through time and space. This touches into animal cruelty.The kitten Tag was raised by kind humans who he referred to as "dulls." He lived a pampered life. But soon, dreams of the outside world started pouring into his safe, cozy home. Dreams about things he couldn't understand. Eventually, he got lured out of the house. Once out, he couldn't find his way back in. He met a fox, a magpie and and old one-eyed black cat named Majicou. Majicou, through dreams, told him he must find the King and Queen of cats and bring them to Tintagel before the spring equinox. Apart from that, Tag knew nothing. So, he set out on an amazing journey in which he will learn about strength, courage, and most of all, friendship. In addition to becoming friends with the fox and the magpie, he meets Sealink, the calico from New Orleanes, Mousebreath, an old fighter and Cy the tabby, one of the Alchemist's proxies, with a spark plug in her head. Due to the spark plug and the experiments that altered her, Cy is what one might call "insane", saying odd things at random times, and having unnatural powers. The band finds the King and Queen, only to be separated again by cat-catchers. Will they ever get to Tintagel? Will Tag complete his mission? Or will they fail? Every second of this book is suspenseful; I had to force myself to put it down. One piece of advice to keep in mind while reading: Never assume anybody's dead. You might be surprised, in this book or it's sequel The Golden Cat, another fantastic book.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the best...
Review: This book does have some good parts, and it has quite an interesting concept, but it is NOT the best cat fiction ever (as some reviewers have claimed!) If you want a good cat fiction read Tailchaser's Song by Tad Williams - amazing! As good was Watership Down (a classic novel .. about rabbits - read it, too!) I found this book hard to get through, even though animal fantasy novels are my absolute favorite.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite book
Review: I read this book about a year ago, but I still love it. After reading nothing but horrible required books in school for about a month, I really feel like reading this again. Unlike some books I've read this is a real page-turner. I couldn't put it down the first or second time I read it. The Golden Cat, the sequel was just as good (if not better). Contrary to what other people have said about this book, the author developed the characters well without rambling, which is almost impossible for most authors to do. I give this book 4 paws up. It may not be 50 years old and written by a recluse, but it's definitely a classic in my opinion.
Rating:
Summary: Captivating story, powerful tale and a philosophical journey
Review: The Wild Road tells the story of two ancient souls and their encounters throughout time. One is the Majicou, and the other is the Alchemist. The Alchemist has been searching for understanding of the universe, but he has been approaching the problem in all the wrong ways. The Majicou is the guardian of great secrets that humans may not be privy to, and the Alchemist will go to any lengths to learn.
This is a story of magic and mysticism, loyalty and courage, as a group of feline friends set out to defend something which they themselves do not quite understand. It is also a story about how everyone can make a difference to the world, however insignificant their lives may seem.
The storytelling gathers more and more potence as the novel progresses, transporting the reader to times and places seen anew, through the eyes of other creatures. I highly recommend this.powerful tale, it is a captivating story and a philosophical journey
Rating: 
Summary: Unforgettable, if not always pleasant, hero cat
Review: First: this is less fun than reading cats as imagined by Paul Gallico and Robert Westall. Where those two authors' cats always stand firmly in relation to the human world, the people in this world are shadowy figures, either "dulls" (kitten Tag's name for his owners) or menacing. Oh, there are a few decent people who appear from time to time, but this story is a hero-quest in which animals and people coexist but are not really codependent. Second: you'll never look at your cats quite the same way again. While I have not been tempted to reread THE WILD ROAD yet, and it's been a year, it's extraordinary how many of Tag's observations and impressions occur to me on a regular basis. Result? Nobody who loves cats should miss this book. Warning: some of the book is a little hard to take-- one of the things Tag is called upon to do, by the magic cat Majicou, is rescue cats who are being captured for experimentation, and there are some pitiful animals who've been through some of it already. Also, it's very hard to resist constantly "translating" the myth into human terms. (minor spoiler: it turns out there IS a rather famous alchemist/scientist who is the villain-- with a touch of real tragedy much of his animal-abuse stems from his fascination with his pet and desire to follow the "wild road" that only cats traveln on-- but, even when this scientist acquires his famous name-- hint-- gravity-- it doesn't really illuminate very much). Resist the urge to translate, if you can. Situating the events with times and places is interesting, but not as interesting as all that. There are lots of in-jokes for cat lovers and breeders. I've never had a purebred, but I realized when I began investigating them that Tag and his companions all have logical purebred names. Loved the joke of the white cat saying "speak up, lovey, I'm as deaf as a post" (white cats genetically are often deaf).
And the image of the noble, dumb Norwegian forest cat ineptly trying to care for his lady love (until Tag arrives and scolds him that it's food, not a pillow, she needs). And later seeing the Norwegian Forest cat zig zag down a tree (one of their talents!) It turns out this pair of illicit lovers (escaped from their breeders to be together) are the king and queen of cats whose rescue is Tag's task. The poetic language and vivid description make this a book of substance. Think of it as a sort of Arthurian quest with a feline hero (in fact, Tag is called on to bring the cats to Tintagel, which is an Arthurian site, of course) and the occasional vagueness or darkness shouldn't be too troubling. This is a fairy tale for adults.
Rating:
Summary: Disturbing, but interesting
Review: I read "The Golden Cat" BEFORE I read "The Wild Road" and even though reading "Wild Road" cleared up all my questions from the second book, "Golden Cat" was the better-written of the two novels. It's as if King found his balance in the second book. However, I must say that the concepts raised are disturbing, and the symbolism of the "green fire" mentioned in various parts is vague. The book is often very sad, with the images of animal experimentation, and it would be nice to balance the story by having some decent humans in it. The Magicou has selected Tag, and although Magicou is impatient with the young cat not "catching on" to what he is teaching him, I can relate to Tag's bewilderment because the teaching's aren't at all well-presented. Cy is a great character, as well as Mousebreath, and Sealink definitely comes into her own in the second volume. Good, strong characters and dialogue carry the story in spite of the obtuse plot of what the Alchemist hopes to achieve.
Rating:
Summary: Rich cat fantasy--take a walk on the wild road
Review: A very enjoyable, pleasurable, yet philosophical read that you will want to put down from time to time to take it all in. A great amount of description nudges, catlike, the narrative along,with spectacular lyrical writing and many active verbs. It surprised me to see one of my co-reviewers describe the style as a passive/preponderance of wases. Sentences like "A shaggy-coated pony stood, one leg bent, in a muddy corner, looking boredly over a gray wooden gate." (p 254) or "Clouds roared past the moon." (p 301) hauntingly insinuate themselves as turning points in the story, as if the wild roads themselves embody a heretofore undiscovered sense of cat story-stelling. The hero beings, mostly furry feline, one just furry, one a bird, each have a distinct personality and a complicated and enlightened (enlightening!) sense of self. Humans, rarely present, don't come off so well. Tag, the naive lead hero, is a fun, optimistic, energetic and playful APPRENTICE of the mysterious master cat guardian of the wild roads, Majicou. My one reservation would be that having finished the book and enjoyed it tremendously (in spite of some of the graphic gore which was necessary to the story) it will be a long while before I attempt the sequel or anything of the same subgenre like Tailchaser's song or Watership Down. I especially want to read Golden Cat and Watership Down, but this is so saturated with senses of 'furry beast, 'spiritual enlightenment and honesty,' and 'the grim tortures of reality,' that I will need to take quite a break from this sort of thing. And this is my first one. And naturally if this is derivative, I wouldn't know it because I haven't read those others, but I certainly doubt it. It's a very rich, satisfying and sweet read, but I'm full.
Rating:
Summary: Engaging Feline Fantasy
Review: I read Tailchaser's Song years ago and found it unentertaining. I recently read The Blood Jaguar as well and found it plodding. So, I entered into reading this cat fantasy with much trepidation. Happily, I wasn't disappointed. This adventure seen through the eyes of calicos, Burmillas, Egyptian Maus, Norwegian Forest Cats, and the ever popular Tabby with Foxes and Magpies tossed in for spice is a pleasure from head to tail. All of the animals have seperate personalities and King writes affably. If you like fantasy with a difference, give it a shot.
Rating:
Summary: Eh, could be a -lot- better...
Review: First off, go hit the library if you want to read this book. Don't bother wasting the [$] the used book store will charge you. The story is only worth one read-through, even though the plot isn't bad. What hit me with this book, and it's sequil was the writing style itself. Neither the store, nor the charactors managed to snag my interest, yet on looking back they -should- have. Good for one read-through, and only if you like cats. ^_~
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