PW called this tale of 13-year-old Bird and two boys connected by a single heart (her stepfather's nephew, recipient of a heart transplant, and the boy whose brother was the donor) "a quiet, affecting story." Ages 10-up. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
Gr 5-8-An open-ended, interconnected narrative in three voices. Bird, 13, has run away from Cleveland to rural Alabama, trying to find her stepfather, Cecil, and bring him home. Ethan, who turns out to be Cecil's nephew, is adjusting to the freedom that a heart transplant affords him. Jay is grieving for his brother, whose death provided the necessary heart. Bird hides out in a shed on Ethan's family's farm, convinced that Cecil will come because she'd seen Ethan in the man's photographs. She soon gets lonely. Conveniently, Ethan, who has been socially isolated by his illness, is anxious to befriend her. Jay knows about Ethan, but cannot bring himself to approach the younger boy. Persuaded by his best friend to "borrow" an elderly neighbor's car, Jay winds up under house arrest, but sneaks out and encounters Bird himself. The owner of the stolen car, Mrs. Pritchard, offers Bird refuge at her house, providing her comfort through good food and a patient, nonjudgmental ear. Johnson reveals the inner thoughts of these characters, as they move around one another, occasionally touching, but preoccupied with their individual problems. Readers see how small kindnesses can ease the grip of grief and how large gestures-the literal giving of a heart-can redound to the giver's credit. Much is left unresolved by the conclusion of the book, but the many truths about human emotion and interaction are exposed for readers' examination.-Miriam Lang Budin, Chappaqua Public Library, NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Bird confronts friendship, family, and human limitations in this poignant tale. Thirteen-year-old Bird has run away from her Ohio home to search for her vanished stepfather. Hiding in a shed in Acorn, Alabama, Bird dances by moonlight and tries not to be too lonely. She can't help but get involved with the people she meets: Ethan, a boy whose life was saved by a heart transplant; Jay, whose brother died suddenly; and old Mrs. Pritchard, who used to bake peach cobbler before she lost her husband. Bird covetously observes the happy families of Acorn, but doesn't see that everyone has grief and tragedies to bear. Told through the alternating voices of Bird, Jay, and Ethan, this moving journey follows four lonely people as they touch each other's lives. A lovely and sad glimpse of individuals caring for one another in an imperfect world. (Fiction. 10-13)
The lives of three emotionally damaged children intersect in serendipitous ways in this quietly lyrical novel. Readers Hosein (Bird), Palmer (Ethan), and Pavich (Jay) are well cast, sensitively conveying each character. Thirteen-year-old Bird has gone in pursuit of the stepfather who left suddenly; Ethan, the stepfather’s lonely nephew, is coming to terms with a new life in the wake of his heart transplant; and Jay is grieving the loss of his brother, who is, it turns out, the donor of Ethan’s heart. The plot may sound contrived, but the characters are complex and their emotions, genuine and compelling. Further, the performances of the talented young actors pull it all together into a moving story. E.S. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine
