Tell the Wolves I'm Home: A Novel

by Carol Rifka Brunt

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A heartfelt story of love, grief, and renewal about two unlikely friends who discover that sometimes you don’t know you’ve lost someone until you’ve found them

“A dazzling debut novel.”—O: The Oprah Magazine
“Tremendously moving.”—The Wall Street Journal
“Touching and ultimately hopeful.”—People
 
1987. The only person who has ever truly understood fourteen-year-old June Elbus is her uncle, the renowned painter Finn Weiss. Shy at school and distant from her older sister, June can be herself only in Finn’s company; he is her godfather, confidant, and best friend. So when he dies, far too young, of a mysterious illness her mother can barely speak about, June’s world is turned upside down.
 
But Finn’s death brings a surprise acquaintance into June’s life. At the funeral, June notices a strange man lingering just beyond the crowd. A few days later, she receives a package in the mail containing a beautiful teapot she recognizes from Finn’s apartment, and a note from Toby, the stranger, asking for an opportunity to meet. As the two begin to spend time together, June realizes she’s not the only one who misses Finn, and that this unexpected friend just might be the one she needs the most.
 
WINNER OF THE ALEX AWARD • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The Wall Street Journal • O: The Oprah Magazine • BookPage • Kirkus Reviews • Booklist • School Library Journal

• ISBN10: 0812982851
• ISBN13: 9780812982855
• Publish Date: 4 June 2013 (first published 1 January 2012)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Imprint: Dial Press Trade Paperback
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 384
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780812982855

Reviews

[clementine]

This was a lovely, realistic portrayal of how AIDS impacted one family. June's parents' difficulty acknowledging Finn's decade-long relationship was incredibly realistic, certainly in line with non-fiction accounts I've read of that era. Though it was clear that June's mother loved her brother, there was a tragic indecency in Finn's death in her refusal to speak openly about his sexuality, his partner, his disease. The stigma attached to his death was clear in so many little places throughout the novel, most notably in Greta's reticence to be known as Finn's niece. June was a complex character, thoughtful but still naïve, realistically fourteen. The main disconnect for me was that I couldn't always get a good grasp on why June struggled to fit in. Her obsession with the past and her closeness with her uncle are clearly a function of the fact that she feels like a misfit, but I didn't entirely understand why. That said, I'm a little annoyed that it took me six years to read this after marking it "to read" - it was great!

[Bianca]

Maybe I was destined to forever fall in love with people I couldn’t have. Maybe there’s a whole assortment of impossible people waiting for me to find them. Waiting to make me feel the same impossibility over and over again.

[celinenyx]

Such a sweet, soft, sad story. One of the best and most genuine books dealing with grief, loss, and growing up that I've read.

[brokentune]

"Watching people is a good hobby, but you have to be careful about it. You can’t let people catch you staring at them. If people catch you, they treat you like a first-class criminal. And maybe they’re right to do that. Maybe it should be a crime to try to see things about people they don’t want you to see."

2.5* really - but rounded up.

I usually try and stay away from YA literature, but was persuaded to pick this one up because a couple of friends, who usually share my hesitation about YA, recommended this - and what can I say?

For the first half of the book, the recommendation was spot on! I loved the characters, I loved the story, the development, the notion that there are several sides to a story - that by observation or questioning a truth can change -, that ... it sometimes takes effort and courage to be the one who is not content with the facts as they seem.

When June's uncle dies from an AIDS-related illness and her family try to come to terms with their own grief and try to find someone to blame for his death, June is having to overcome her family's silence on the matter and find out what the real story is.

So, why - I hear you ask - only 2.5*?

Well, as much as liked the beginning of the book, there is a point when events become a little over-dramatised. They did not need to be. The story was good as it was. It was the descriptions of June's journey, her coming of age, that made the story special, not the random events that plot seemed to include in the second half.

What really annoyed me, tho, was the ending! I won't go into details as I do not want to spoil the book, but suffice it to say that I have not read anything dwelling on pathos so unapologetically since The Book Thief.

[laughingrachel]

Very few books ever make me actually, physically cry. This was one.