Bird

Bird by Crystal Chan

So....this book was definitely a coming to terms with grief, discovering yourself, and fighting for what you believe in all jammed pack in this heart wrenching story.

If you can't handle bawling at books, then you might want to pass on this.

For everyone else, this book was soooo good.

There were a lot of moments where I almost couldn't handle the overwhelming FEELS the book invoked within me. FEELS EVERYWHERE.

......so there's that.

FEELS.

An amazon summary, "Entrenched secrets, mysterious spirits, and an astonishing friendship weave together in this extraordinary and haunting debut.

Nothing matters. Only Bird matters. And he flew away.

Jewel never knew her brother Bird, but all her life she has lived in his shadow. Her parents blame Grandpa for the tragedy of their family’s past; they say that Grandpa attracted a malevolent spirit—a duppy—into their home. Grandpa hasn’t spoken a word since. Now Jewel is twelve, and she lives in a house full of secrets and impenetrable silence.

Jewel is sure that no one will ever love her like they loved Bird, until the night that she meets a mysterious boy in a tree. Grandpa is convinced that the boy is a duppy, but Jewel knows that he is something more. And that maybe—just maybe—the time has come to break through the stagnant silence of the past." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE

Jewel was born into a grieving family; on the day she was born her older brother, John (nicknamed Bird), died by jumping off of a cliff as he believed he could fly.

Since that day, her Grandpa hasn't spoken a word and Jewel has lived amongst a family that doesn't seem to love life anymore - that just takes each day and tries to survive to the next.

It's the summer; Jewel has no friends and no one to play with until John arrives. He's about the same age as her and is visiting his Uncle for the summer.

Jewel slowly becomes friends with him as they accept things about each other that haven't been accepted by others before (like how John wants to become an astronaut and Jewel wants to be a geologist).

 Jewel constantly struggles with her distant parents and silent Grandpa - although her Grandpa seems to be convinced that John is not good news.

As Jewel learns more about who her family used to be, her heart aches for a brother she never knew, and thus unfolds the story of Bird.

It was absolutely beautiful.

Happy reading!