From the case files of, "what the heck took you so long to read this?", comes Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt. June is a typical shy teenager, left in the shadow of her dramatic older sister. The year is 1987, and anyone who was around during this time knows about HIV/AIDS. There was a huge stigma attached to the virus, and there were people saying, "be careful drinking out of someone's cup-you could catch it! Don't sit on the toilet seat, you could pick it up off of the seat." Looking at it in retrospect, it seems so archaic to think that way, but I don't think our society has evolved all that much since 1987. mean, we have controversy over a biracial Cheerios commercial for goodness sake! In the book, June's uncle Finn, a famous painter, has AIDS. He also has a "boyfriend" who surfaces as a mystery man at Finn's funeral. When June befriends this man, and finds out more about her Uncle Finn, she finds the one true thing they have in common-their love for Finn. The story is so nuanced, complicated and perfect, it really satisfies the reader's thirst for an amazing book.
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