S.J. Parris
S.J. Parris writes about her inspiration for Heresy, which masterfully blends true events with fiction into a page-turning murder mystery set on the sixteenth-century Oxford University campus.
Adam Haslett
A conversation with Adam Haslett, author of Union Atlantic, a deeply affecting portrait of the modern gilded age, the first decade of the twenty-first century.
My Dad's A Birdman: Summary and book reviews of My Dad's A Birdman by David Almond, plus links to an excerpt from My Dad's A Birdman and a biography of David Almond.
In a rainy town in the north of England, there are strange goings-on. Dad is building a pair of wings, eating flies, and feathering his nest. Auntie Doreen is getting cross and making dumplings. Contest barker Mr. Poop is parading the streets shouting louder and louder, and even Mr. Mint, the headmaster, is not quite himself. And watching it all is Lizzie, missing her mam and looking after Dad by letting him follow his newfound whimsy.
From an inspired creative pairing comes a story of the Great Human Bird Competition -- a poignant, exuberant tale of the healing power of flights of fancy, and a very special father-and-daughter bond.
Join a young girl and her dad as they find their wings and take to the skies in a joyful, quirky, tender tale from a masterful author and illustrator.
Book Reviews
BookBrowse - Jo Perry
This bittersweet and nimbly-illustrated tale of a wise girl whose bird-brained father attempts to rise above earthly sorrow will lift the spirits of readers young and old. Almond has written a fable and the language is poem-like, even delicate, throughout. Children will enjoy reading about silly grownups and wise kids. Adults, more keenly mortal, will, with a pang, recognize Lizzie's father's impulse to, as Robert Frost put in his poem "Birches, " …get away from earth awhile/And then come back to it and begin over." Full Review (members only, 1035 words).
Kirkus Reviews
Almond aims at a younger audience than usual, but crafts a tale at least as emotionally complex as any of his heavier outings...readers will definitely come away with mixed feelings-not necessarily a bad thing, to be sure. Ages 10-12.
The Times - Nicholette Jones
Polly Dunbar’s colourful, circusy illustrations bring out the fun and sweetness of this fable, which will make children laugh while encouraging them to believe in themselves and others and to tolerate strangeness.
The Times - Amanda Craig My Dad's a Birdman is an enchantingly wise, funny and subversive book. The lucid, comical, brightly coloured illustrations by Polly Dunbar owe much to Quentin Blake, and strike just the right note. Children of 5 to 7 will love it, but the ones who should take it most to heart are adults. I fear it will preach only to the converted, but if you know a depressed child, or a despairing parent, this could be just the ticket.
The Postmistress is an unforgettable tale of the secrets we must bear, or bury. It is about what happens to love during wartime, when those we cherish leave. And how every story-of love or war-is about looking left when we should have been looking right.
Masterfully blending true events with fiction, this blockbuster historical thriller delivers a page-turning murder mystery set on the sixteenth-century Oxford University campus.
Kostova's masterful new novel travels from American cities to the coast of Normandy, from the late 19th century to the late 20th, from young love to last love. The Swan Thieves is a story of obsession, history's losses, and the power of art to preserve human hope.
What drives a man to stay in a marriage, in a job? What forces him away? Is love or conscience enough to overcome the darker, stronger urges of the natural world? The Unnamed is a deeply felt, luminous novel about modern life, ancient yearnings, and the power of human understanding.
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My Dad's A Birdman
BookBrowse - 
(members only, 1035 words).
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