Wolf on the Fold
Six short stories span four generations of one family in Australia. The title story, set in 1935, introduces eleven-year-old Kenny Sinclair, whose father has just died and who now must find work to help support his family. The disappearance and murder of two boys in the area is on Kenny's mind as he pedals the long distance into town to look for work. Certain of his own safety, but less certain of anyone hiring him, Kenny stops to warm himself at a man's fire on a desolate stretch of road, and it is only presence of mind and sheer will that keeps him from becoming a third victim when the man turns suddenly sinister. Each of the subsequent stories features Kenny and his family as direct or peripheral characters. Kenny's two daughters are featured in three selections. In two of them they are still children or teenagers, navigating the complexities of their own relationship and their understanding of others. In "Jerusalem the Golden," Kenny's daughter Frances is grown and living in Israel, married to a Jewish man. Set at the start of the Gulf War, the story follows Frances, who has been involved in the Israeli peace movement, as she takes her young son to the Arab market in search of figs from his favorite vendor. She is frightened to go, and shameful of her fear. In "Dhikulsha," Kenny is a kindly older neighbor to an immigrant Indian family in which two young brothers struggle to deal with both daily racism and memories of the devastation wrought on their family before they came to Australia. The final story, set in 2002, comes full circle as Kenny's great-grandson is visited by an image of his great-grandfather at a time when he needs strength to help his own family survive. Judith Clarke's singular, stirring collection is heartbreaking and emotionally sustaining all at once, illuminating the ways in which we love each other, hurt each other, and, above all, help one another heal. ©2002 Cooperative Children's Book Center
CCBC Age Recommendation: Age 12 and older
Age Range:
Grades 6-8 (Ages 11-13)
Grades 9-12 (Age 14 and older)
Format:
Short Stories
Subjects:
Australians
Economic Hardship and Poverty
Families
Hope and Healing
Immigration and Immigrants
Racism
Trauma
Violence
War
Publisher:
Front Street
Publish Year: 2002
Pages: 169
ISBN: 1886910790
CCBC Location: Fiction, Clarke