60 pages • 2 hours read
Wolfsong
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Chapters 1-5Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Content Warning: This section contains depictions of kidnapping, violence, child abuse, torture, and discrimination against those with developmental disabilities, including the use of the “R” word.
Chapter 1 Summary: “Motes of Dust/Cold and Metal”
Ox’s father leaves the family. Before leaving, he tells Ox that life will be hard for him because people won’t understand him. At this point, Ox doesn’t understand that his father is never coming back. His father tells him he has to “be a man now” (3), which Ox understands to mean staying strong and not crying. A couple of weeks after his father leaves, Ox tries on one of his father’s work shirts: to him, it’s the epitome of manhood and belonging. He tries to convince his reflection that he can be a man.
Chapter 2 Summary: “Catalytic Converter/Dreaming While Awake”
Ox approaches his father’s previous boss at the auto repair shop, Gordo, to ask for a job. His mother, Maggie Matheson, is seven months behind on mortgage payments. Gordo loans them the money and says he will take it out of Ox’s under-the-table pay until the debt is paid. Ox’s mother is so grateful she cries. She flirts with Gordo a little, but Ox knows that Gordo is gay. After six months, Gordo says that the debt is paid.
The town of Green Creek is “dying” because most people leave when they grow up. Ox doesn’t know why people leave; he thinks of Green Creek as home.
