The House of Wolves

Content Warning: The source text and this guide contain references to murder, violence, suicide, racism, sexism, and addiction.

Jenny Wolf is the protagonist of The House of Wolves. She is the only daughter in the Wolf family, and the novel centers on her efforts to retain control of her family’s business empire after her father’s death. Jenny is described as a natural beauty who “didn’t have to work at it, ever” (156), and whose fair hair “somehow made her look younger than she actually was” (156). She has an athletic build and was a champion swimmer in high school and college.

At the beginning of the novel, Jenny is defined by her desire to distance herself from her family. Although she attended college at the University of California, Berkeley, and law school at Stanford, Jenny chose not to join the family business. Instead, she teaches political science at a high school and coaches their football team. Even when she attends Wolves games, she avoids her father’s owner’s box and her brother’s president’s box, choosing instead to watch the games in “the seats [she] bought for [herself]” (59).

By the end of the novel, however, Jenny has fully accepted her position as a member of the Wolf business empire.