Her wordsmithing is fantastic, rife with vivid turns of phrase. A sense of foreboding subtly permeates the story as Fridlund slowly reveals what happened to Paul. Fridlund expertly laces Linda’s possessive protectiveness for Patra with something darker, bordering on romantic jealousy. Matters take a curious turn once Patra’s husband, an older man named Leo, returns after months away at work.
At the same time, Linda forges a friendship with the comparatively worldly Patra Gardner and her endearing four-year-old, Paul, whom Linda babysits for a summer before his sudden and mysterious death. She’s also fascinated by the scandal that occurs when Lily Holburn, a student at her school, accuses a teacher, Adam Grierson, of inappropriate behavior but then recants her testimony. Having been raised in a commune by unconventional parents, Linda is prone to provocative statements and challenging authority. The opening chapter of History of Wolves was published in Southwest Review and won the 2013 McGinnis-Ritchie Award for Fiction.In Fridlund’s stellar debut novel, 14-year-old Linda, an observant loner growing up in the Minnesota woods, becomes intrigued with the Gardners, the young family that moves in across the lake from her home.Īs she gets to know them, she realizes that something is amiss.
It won the Mary McCarthy Prize and will be published by Sarabande in 2017. Fridlund's collection of stories, Catapult, was a finalist for the Noemi Book Award for Fiction and the Tartts First Fiction Award. She holds a PhD in Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Southern California. Her fiction has appeared in a variety of journals, including Boston Review, Five Chapters, New Orleans Review, New Delta Review, Chariton Review, The Portland Review, and Painted Bride Quarterly. Emily Fridlund grew up in Minnesota and currently resides in the Finger Lakes region of New York. The opening chapter of History of Wolves was published in Southwest Review and won the 2013 McGinnis-Ritchie Award for Fiction.
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