History of Wolves |
History of Wolves by Emily Fridlund
Told
through the perspective of 14 year old Linda/Madeline, History of Wolves by
Emily Fridlund is an incredible first novel filled with emotion, power and
depth exploring Linda’s coming of age in a remote community in the northeastern
US.
Linda
lives in a shack on the edge of a lake in northern Minnesota. The shack is what
remains of a commune where Linda spent most of her childhood, until relations
among the members became strained and the commune dissolved. Linda and her
parents live off the land, away from town, and Linda is often left to her own
devices, her parents not asking where she goes or what she gets up to.
Linda
is alone, she attends the local school and we learn a bit about her school
life, which does not include any close friendships. Her tales of school revolve
around her teachers, particularly one teacher who encourages Linda beyond her
comfort zone, but disappears later as he is accused of child pornography.
The
greatest focus is Linda’s relationship with the new neighbours across the lake,
a young couple with a small child. The father, Leo, is often away and the
mother, Patra, hires Linda to watch over her young son, Paul. Linda really
enjoys the time spent with this family and loves teaching Paul about nature.
However, from the start we get the feeling that Paul is not your typical
toddler. Patra is very protective of
Paul and sometimes snaps at Linda unexpectedly.
The
relationship Linda has with Patra’s family is interwoven with stories of her
life at school and at home, and show her as an outsider in each, wanting to
belong. It is this need to belong that perhaps allows Linda to be unaware of
what is really happening to Paul. The reader is as unsure as Linda as nothing
is told to us outright, we are continually piecing things together until the
tragic end.
The
dreamy magic realism writing structure gives the story a surreal feel, but at
the same time the characters and action compel you to keep reading to see what
happens next. I really enjoyed this story and found it a quick read as I needed
to keep reading to find out if my suspicions were correct.
For
other popular reading suggestions check out Richmond Public Library's Web site
at www.yourlibrary.ca/goodbooks/.
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Hello, Helen V,
ReplyDelete"History of wolves" by Emily Fridlund is an awesome book. I've read it several times, but I never get bored of it. Thanks for sharing awesome books with us. Now avail mobile screen repair Baltimore for more information. Gonna check your posts as well.