Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Patty Pick for 1/28/16 is "Tell the Wolves I'm Home" by Carol Rifka Brunt


"Tell the Wolves I'm Home" is aptly titled in many ways. The story starts with our two sisters, Greta & June, sitting for a portrait being painted by their Uncle Finn. He titles it "Tell the Wolves I'm Home" and hides a outline of a wolf between the two girls in the painting. As we meet our characters, we find out that our family has its issues. Finn, a famous artist, is dying of of AIDS and this will be something he can leave for his nieces after he is gone. 
June is devastated. Her family keeps Finn's homosexuality and impending death a secret from her. She and Finn have a special relationship. As she and Greta grew apart, Finn fills the void. June thinks she might be a little in love with her uncle. She hopes no one knows. June wants to live in a medieval world and has difficulty relating with kids her own age. Finn filled the need of support in her life and their many shared outings and places in the city they go together, feel the void of no friends. 
As our story advances, we are pushed into the lives and difficult relationships of many of the couples in our story. Junes's mom, Danni, and Finn were very close as siblings of a military family but as 17, Finn left and their realtionship is strained at best. Greta and Danni used to be inseprable but they now do not talk at all or if they do it's to cut each other down in some way. Neither one realized they are jealous of the other until the painting hits the fan so to speak.
This dysfunctional family comes together and we watch them all grow up a little. You will be pulling for June. But don't count out Greta just yet.