Bestselling author Martha Hunt Handler chatted with Digital Journal’s Markos Papadatos about her book “Winter of the Wolf.”
It is a tragic mystery blending sleuthing and spirituality. An exploration in grief, suicide, spiritualism, and Inuit culture, ‘Winter of the Wolf’ follows Bean, an empathic and spiritually evolved 15-year-old, who is determined to unravel the mystery of her brother Sam’s death.
Though all evidence points to a suicide, her heart and intuition compel her to dig deeper. With help from her friend Julie, they retrace Sam’s steps, delve into his Inuit beliefs, and reconnect with their spiritual beliefs to uncover clues beyond material understanding.
Both tragic and heartwarming, this twisting novel draws you into Bean’s world as she struggles with grief, navigates high school dramas, and learns to open her heart in order to see the true nature of the people around her. Winter of the Wolf is about seeking the truth–no matter how painful–in order to see the full picture.
In this novel, environmentalist and award-winning author, Martha Handler, brings together two important pieces of her life–the death of her best friend’s son and her work as president of the Wolf Conservation Center–to tell an empathetic and powerful story with undeniable messages.
Martha Hunt Handler grew up dreaming of wolves and has always understood that her role in this lifetime is to tell stories and be a voice for nature. She has been an environmental consultant, a magazine columnist, an actress, and a polar explorer, among other occupations.
When she and her four children relocated from Los Angeles to New York more than twenty years ago she began to literally hear the howls of wolves. This marked the beginning of her work advocating on behalf of wolves at the Wolf Conservation Center (nywolf.org). Winter of the Wolf is Martha’s debut novel.
‘Winter of the Wolf’ takes readers on quite the adventure and is also about going to any lengths to find the truth. What was the inspiration for this riveting story?
My best friend found her 12-year-old son hanging from a belt. It was shocking and made absolutely no sense. Though my friend and I were both very spiritual, we couldn’t make any sense of a soul leaving so early. Especially a soul who appeared to be happy and well adjusted. And my friend truly never believed it was a suicide despite all the evidence. I began to journal about all the feelings I was having at that time.
Besides feeling confused, I also felt like a bad friend because I couldn’t find any words to comfort her. Then one day, I began to channel her son. I’d never before channeled anyone, but his voice was very clear. He was insisting that my journal entries should be jumping off point for a novel. And so I started to write this novel not knowing exactly where it was going. But, to be clear, my novel isn’t this boy’s story – it’s fiction. Except for the ending.
‘Winter of the Wolf’ has certainly been a big hit with readers, what has that been like for you? What was the most interesting feedback you’ve received from a reader?
The best responses I’ve received have been from readers who told me they were able to move from a place of grief to a place of gratitude after reading my novel. That is my sole (soul?) intention.
To get people to see that life is eternal and that we should be thankful for the time we have with the wonderful souls who are in our lives and all the lessons they taught us rather than focusing on loss.
Inuit culture plays a pivotal role in ‘Winter of the Wolf’ which is amazing. What is it that you find so compelling about Inuit culture?
Just like in my novel, when I was in second grade we watched the 1922 movie Nanook of the North. It was a black and white, silent movie and yet I was absolutely riveted by it. I just knew that I’d known Nanook in a past life. He was so familiar to me. After that, I started researching more about the Inuit.
I’ve always been fascinated by native cultures as they were all felt a deep connection to the natural world and treated it with the respect it deserves. Sadly, this is no longer true for many people today and this mass disconnection has resulted in global catastrophes.
You are gifted at creating compelling characters that draw readers into their world. What is one of your keys when developing characters? What was your inspiration for Bean?
For my characters in this novel, I did a deep dive into my childhood. Bean is me if only I’d been more sure of myself and my beliefs. Sam is based on one of my brothers (who’s thankfully still with us). Bean’s mother and father were based on my parents. Certainly, there was a lot of tweaking, but all the characters were based on someone I know or knew.
I’m sure your fans are dying to know – do you have another book in the works?
I’m considering writing an “equal,” which is a book that takes place during the same time period but is told by another character. I’d like to write a book from Sam’s perspective. What does someone who’s crossed over make of his family’s grief? What would he want to say to his family and to Skip? And what is it like to be a soul who’s crossed over?
The only other book that I’ve read that has someone from the other side speaking is The Lovely Bones, but in that case, the character was only trying to help her family find her killer. I’ve also considered a sequel because so many readers want to know what happens to Bean and Skip.
“Winter of the Wolf” is available on Amazon.
