Lone Wolf

December 19, 2011
Picoult returns with two provocative questions: can a human join a wolf pack, and who has the right to make end-of-life decisions? Luke Warren, a vital free spirit, has devoted himself to understanding wolf behavior, to the point of having once abandoned his family to live with wolves. Now divorced and raising his 17-year-old daughter, Cara, near his wolf compound, Luke sustains a traumatic brain injury in an accident. His ex-wife, Georgie, remarried to a lawyer, summons Cara’s brother, Edward, from Thailand, where he’s lived for years alienated from his family, who assume the estrangement stems from his father’s rejection of Edward’s homosexuality. Cara wants to keep her father on life support; Edward struggles with resentment but believes his father wouldn’t want to exist in a vegetative state. As Cara and Edward navigate their own conflicts and Luke languishes in a coma, Picoult folds in mesmerizing excerpts of Luke’s book about life with the wolves. There are no surprises, as Picoult (My Sister’s Keeper) as usual probes intriguing matters of the heart while introducing her fans to subjects they might not otherwise explore. You can always count on Picoult for a terrific page-turner about a compelling subject. Agent: Laura Gross, Laura Gross Literary Agency.

Picoult's latest continues her penchant for embracing controversial topics. Each of the well-cast narrators portrays a different character in the novel. As an ensemble, they complement one another without diffusing the story of a family that is faced with the ultimate medical dilemma--whether or not to move forward with the euthanasia of a family member. Luke, a world-renowned wolf species conservationist, has suffered a traumatic brain injury. Now, his grown children must decide the moral imperative between survival and sacrifice--a situation, in principle, that is often faced by wolves. Mark Zeisler's portrayal of Luke is especially poignant as Luke tells his story from the past while he hangs on via life support. As Luke, Zeisler shares a wealth of information about wolf behavior, interaction, and intelligence. The insights into wolf pack dynamics draw striking analogies to the story, creating a strongly unified story and presentation. A.W. (c) AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine