Lee Mandelo dives into the minds of wolves in Feed Them Silence, a novella of the near future.

What does it mean to "be-in-kind" with a nonhuman animal? Or in Dr. Sean Kell-Luddon’s case, to be in-kind with one of the last remaining wild wolves? Using a neurological interface to translate her animal subject’s perception through her own mind, Sean intends to chase both her scientific curiosity and her secret, lifelong desire to experience the intimacy and freedom of wolfishness. To see the world through animal eyes; smell the forest, thick with olfactory messages; even taste the blood and viscera of a fresh kill. And, above all, to feel the belonging of the pack.

Sean’s tireless research gives her a chance to fulfill that dream, but pursuing it has a terrible cost. Her obsession with work endangers her fraying relationship with her wife. Her research methods threaten her mind and body. And the attention of her VC funders could destroy her subject, the beautiful wild wolf whose mental world she’s invading.

Also Available by Lee Mandelo:

Summer Sons

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.



Praise for this book

An NPR Best Book of 2023!

“It's rare to find such a bold exploration of [our fraying relationship with nature] as we do in Feed them Silence.” —Charlie Jane Anders for The Washington Post



“Feed Them Silence is a toxic love story with the world we're killing, delivered in Mandelo's visceral, melancholic prose. You'll want to put it down, but you won't.” —Alix E. Harrow, New York Times bestselling author of The Once and Future Witches

“Holy hell, what a visceral and heart-clenching book. Feed Them Silence is a searing portrait of what it means to give up distance for the sake of understanding.” —Sarah Gailey, bestselling author of Magic for Liars



“Lee Mandelo's crisp, urgent novella, centered on a study that links the consciousness of a researcher to that of one of North America's last wild wolves, is a new leader of the pack.” —Scientific American



“Feed Them Silence is a creative exploration of belonging and the burdens of humanity with an incredible amount of depth.” —Liam McBain for NPR

“Mandelo delivers a powerful message about environmentalism and the limits of technology that doubles as a page-turning story about a collapsing marriage. Urgent, intimate, immediate, this is sure to wow.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Marvelously original and told with sensual perfection, Feed Them Silence is a beautiful, haunting testament to human need—and a lament for everything it destroys.” —Andy Davidson, author of The Hollow Kind

“Lee Mandelo shows how quickly catastrophe can breed distrust in both people and starving wolves. When a single element falters, the entire environment begins to crumble.” —Los Angeles Review of Books

“An unsettling exploration of intimacy...Feed Them Silence subtly illuminates the disintegration of boundaries: humans and animals, work and love, research and exploitation.” —E.J. Beaton, author of The Councillor

“This novella... will make readers consider their own beliefs regarding ethics, research, technology, and relationships.” —Library Journal




About the AuthorLEE MANDELO is a writer, critic, and occasional editor whose fields of interest include speculative and queer fiction, especially when the two coincide. His debut novel Summer Sons, which has been featured in NPR and the Chicago Review of Books, is a contemporary southern gothic dealing with queer masculinity, fast cars, and ugly inheritances. Other work can be found in magazines such as Tor.com, Uncanny, and Nightmare; he has also been a past nominee for awards including the Nebula, Lambda, and Hugo. Aside from a stint overseas learning to speak Scouse, Mandelo has spent his life ranging across Kentucky, currently living in Louisville and pursuing a PhD at the University of Kentucky.
Title: Feed Them Silence
Author(s): Lee Mandelo
ISBN: 9781250824516
Copyright 2023
Release Date: March 14, 2023
Publisher: Tor Publishing Group
Countries: United States, Canada | Learn more about available countries
Language: English
Format: mobi,ePub | Learn More about our supported formats
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