Emily Fridlund’s 2017 debut novel, History of Wolves, blends the genres of thriller and bildungsroman to tell the story of a teen’s coming of age through the life altering events that follow her taking up a babysitting position for her new neighbors. The novel, a finalist for the Man Booker Prize, examines guilt, trauma, obsession, and the responsibility of the onlooker through the emotionally evasive protagonist as she attempts to navigate the adult world. This guide is based on the First Grove Atlantic paperback edition, November 2017. 

Plot Summary

Madeline Furston, Linda, grew up in an abandoned commune with her parents. Her mother, whom she suspects is not her biological parent, and her father remained behind when the rest of the commune left, raising Linda in complete isolation. As a result, Linda grew into an emotionally distant teen without the interpersonal skills to form meaningful relationships; at home and at school, she is completely alone. 

Now a 37-year-old woman, Linda recounts the events of the summer when she was 15, at times interspersing the narrative with dream-like memories from her 26th year. The novel opens with Linda’s memory of Paul, a four-year-old who died. Other than Paul, the only person Linda knew to have died was her eighth-grade teacher, who Mr. Grierson replaced. Mr. Grierson is a Californian who pays special attention to Linda’s beautiful classmate, Lily. Though Mr. Grierson favors Lily, he also takes an interest in Linda by offering her a place in the History Odyssey. Linda, unconventionally, chooses to do a history of wolves. Mr. Grierson drives her home from the event, and Linda kisses him in the car, but he ignores the act. Soon afterward, Linda learns that Mr. Grierson’s former school fired him for accusations of pedophilia, and he was caught with child pornography in his apartment. Linda’s school fires Mr. Grierson, and rumors spread that he had a sexual encounter with Lily. People begin to avoid Lily because of this, but Linda becomes more fascinated with her. 

That spring, the Gardners move into a new house across the lake from Linda’s home. Patra, a young mother, looks after her son, Paul, while her husband, Leo, is away for work. He is a cosmologist, and Patra works part time editing his manuscript while he is away. Patra hires Linda as a babysitter. Linda and Paul bond in their unique way; she teaches him about surviving in the woods, and he shares his imagination with her. However, she is often blunt with him, and they argue in a good-natured way. Linda soon notices Paul’s sickly state; he is weak, easily exhausted, and his skin takes on a gray tinge. 

When Leo returns, Linda comments upon Paul’s illness and immediately learns that she should not speak of it. The Gardners are Christian Scientists and do not believe in the physicality of human existence and don’t believe in the practice of medicine. Paul’s health steadily declines. Linda becomes concerned but never seeks help, trusting Patra who she has developed feelings for. After Paul dies, Patra and Leo are charged with manslaughter but the court acquits them on the grounds of religious exemption. 

After summer break, Linda learns that Lily is pregnant. Though Lily had recounted her testimony at Mr. Grierson’s trial, saying she made up the accusation, the town believes the baby is Mr. Grierson’s. In adulthood, Linda writes to Mr. Grierson, telling him that she knows Lily made the accusation to avoid having to marry the boy who really impregnated her and that she believes Mr. Grierson is innocent.

Linda never grows out of her emotionally distant ways, which only become more cemented after the trauma of Paul’s death. As an adult, she struggles to create lasting relationships and moves from towns and jobs repeatedly. At 37, she returns home to look after her mother years after her father has died. She remembers that eventful summer before her sophomore year, ending the tale by recounting her first day of 10th grade: she wakes early, carrying a letter for Lily that Linda wrote as Mr. Grierson, hoping to confront her classmate about her lies. She changes her mind when she sees Lily pregnant, understanding her motivation. Linda fantasizes that she takes Lily out onto the lake and kisses her, suddenly imagining herself as Lily. As Lily, Linda feels the icy cold air and the sensation that she, finally, is the one everyone sees and wants.

The novel explores themes such as the dangers of religion, the difference between thoughts and action concerning guilt, emotional trauma, and the subversion of the typical coming-of-age novel.