Little Wolves
A tragic act of violence echoes through a small Minnesota town
Set on the Minnesota prairie in the late 1980s during a drought season that’s pushing family farms to the brink, Little Wolves features the intertwining stories of a father searching for answers after his son commits a heinous murder, and a pastor’s wife (and washed-out scholar of early Anglo-Saxon literature) who has returned to the town for mysterious reasons of her own. A penetrating look at small-town America from the award-winning author of The Night Birds, Little Wolves weaves together elements of folklore and Norse mythology while being driven by a powerful murder mystery; a page-turning literary triumph.
Praise for Little Wolves:
“A complicated portrait of a prairie town, a meditation on violence, a fantasia of myth and folklore, and a knockout murder mystery, Little Wolves is haunting, at times terrifying, a gothic cousin to Kent Haruf’s Plainsong. I loved this book.” — Benjamin Percy, author of Red Moon, The Wilding and Refresh, Refresh
“Little Wolves weaves the lives of a father, a son, a pastor’s wife, and a community in this compelling mystery of murder and secrets. His brilliant use of historical and mythical elements are combined with everyday life in ways that are hair-raising and true. Maltman has a gift for framing unforgettable characters. Everything about this book asks us to examine life more closely.” — Elizabeth Cox, Author of The Slow Moon
“This novel churns with the tension of a building prairie thunderstorm. Tom Maltman knows that dark truths can be hidden under open skies, and he knows the secrets of the bloodstained ax in the barn.” — John Reimringer, author of Vestments
“The poetry of this prose and the suspense of the plot, along with the intensity of characterization will have many readers comparing Thomas Maltman to Cormac McCarthy — that greatest of compliments — for very good reason. This novel is a work of high art by the real thing.” — Laura Kasischke, author of Space, in Chains and The Life Before Her Eyes
“My overwhelming sensation upon reading this book is that it is a masterwork of fiction. Not just a good book that’s interesting on multiple levels, but a great book that will stand the test of time. From the rich setting to the compelling characters, from the subtle but very powerful thread that fairy tales weave throughout the narrative to the suggestive implications of the power of story, I was completely spellbound. Add to this the mysteries surrounding the town and characters, and I felt, often, as though I were reading some contemporary version of Dosteovesky.” — Peter Geye, author of Safe from the Sea
“Absolutely fantastic. Unnerving, gorgeously written... The writing is haunting.” — Caroline Leavitt, author of Pictures of You
“An ambitious mythic thriller that hums with energy and portent. Set under brooding prairie skies, Little Wolves has modern psychoses and generational wickedness, ravening devils and uneasy saints. It shifts and dodges like wind, and it rings with conviction and confidence.” — Leif Enger, Author of Peace Like a River
