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The Bird's Child
A unique, rich and evocative of novel of love, birds, magic and revenge.
Sydney, 1929: Three people find themselves washed up on the steps of Miss Du Maurier's bohemian boarding house in a once grand terrace in Newtown. Ari is a young Jewish man, a pogrom orphan, who lives under the stern rule of his rabbi uncle, but dreams his father is Houdini. Upon his hand he bears a forbidden mark - a tattoo - and has a secret ambition to be a magician. Finding an injured parrot one day on the street, Ari is unsure of how to care for it, until he meets young runaway Lily, a glimmering girl after his own abracadabra heart. Together they form a magical act, but their lives take a strange twist when wild card Billy, a charming and dangerous drifter twisted by the war, can no longer harbour secret desires of his own.
The Bird's Child is a feat of sleight-of-hand. Birds speak, keys appear from nowhere, boxes spill secrets and the dead talk. This is a magical, stunningly original, irresistible novel - both an achingly beautiful love story and a slowly unfurling mystery of belonging.
Sydney, 1929: Three people find themselves washed up on the steps of Miss Du Maurier's bohemian boarding house in a once grand terrace in Newtown. Ari is a young Jewish man, a pogrom orphan, who lives under the stern rule of his rabbi uncle, but dreams his father is Houdini. Upon his hand he bears a forbidden mark - a tattoo - and has a secret ambition to be a magician. Finding an injured parrot one day on the street, Ari is unsure of how to care for it, until he meets young runaway Lily, a glimmering girl after his own abracadabra heart. Together they form a magical act, but their lives take a strange twist when wild card Billy, a charming and dangerous drifter twisted by the war, can no longer harbour secret desires of his own.
The Bird's Child is a feat of sleight-of-hand. Birds speak, keys appear from nowhere, boxes spill secrets and the dead talk. This is a magical, stunningly original, irresistible novel - both an achingly beautiful love story and a slowly unfurling mystery of belonging.
373 pages, Paperback
First published March 23, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
April 17, 2015
Actual rating 2.75
Sydney, 1929: Three people find themselves washed up on the steps of Miss Du Maurier's bohemian boarding house, a once grand terrace in Newtown.
Ari is a young Jewish man, a pogrom orphan, who lives under the stern rule of his rabbi uncle, but dreams his father is Houdini. Upon his hand he bears a forbidden mark - a tattoo - and has a secret ambition to be a magician.
Runaway Lily has a heartbreaking past of her own that she's trying to escape.
Finding an injured parrot one day on the street, Ari is unsure of how to care for it, until he meets Lily, a glimmering girl after his own abracadabra heart, and together they form a magical act sure to be a hit.
But their lives take a strange twist when wild card Billy, a charming and dangerous drifter twisted by the war, can no longer harbour secret desires of his own.
The rest of this review can be found here!
Sydney, 1929: Three people find themselves washed up on the steps of Miss Du Maurier's bohemian boarding house, a once grand terrace in Newtown.
Ari is a young Jewish man, a pogrom orphan, who lives under the stern rule of his rabbi uncle, but dreams his father is Houdini. Upon his hand he bears a forbidden mark - a tattoo - and has a secret ambition to be a magician.
My heart pounded, Hou-din-i, Hou-din-i, his name my private incantation. How many times had I said it over and over in my head to block out the past? Everyone knew who Houdini was, but I always thought of him as mine, my own, my phantom father. To hear his name spoken by her laid me bare. Who was she?
Runaway Lily has a heartbreaking past of her own that she's trying to escape.
'They are fragile things, Til the Lil, so many tiny bones, some fine as hairs. They've just knocked themselves senseless against the window, can't tell their head from their tail. When they are hurt they long to be back in the egg again, so best keep them warm and dark to mend.'
Finding an injured parrot one day on the street, Ari is unsure of how to care for it, until he meets Lily, a glimmering girl after his own abracadabra heart, and together they form a magical act sure to be a hit.
But their lives take a strange twist when wild card Billy, a charming and dangerous drifter twisted by the war, can no longer harbour secret desires of his own.
The noisy room had trickled slowly to silence, guests turning to look at her, my Lily-at-a-loss-for-words. Oh, I could have given her words to sing, like a ventriloquist’s doll she would speak at my direction.
The rest of this review can be found here!
March 28, 2015
A story of three beautifully entwined. Actually it's beautifully written; with the story of the three encompassing raw emotions and unveiling the not so gallant behaviour we exhibit when it comes to the pursuit of our dreams.
January 18, 2016
I had two goes at reading this novel. It took me a while to get into it, although I never truly got into it, which was strange, as it wasn't a difficult novel, nor was it too slow or too fantastical.
The novel is about three displaced young people, who find themselves in the interbellum Sydney. One of them is Ari, a Jewish young man, who's escaped the Russian pogrom and is living in Sydney with his very strict, rabbi uncle. Ari is fascinated by magic and by Houdini. The other male protagonist, who's also one of the narrators in the novel, is Billy, a WWI veteran, who's cocky, sneaky and a ladies' man of sorts. Then there's Lily, who's a young albino woman, with a mysterious past. She's got a way with birds.
So Lily and Ari decide to create a magic act, so they gather few birds. The innocent, shy Ari develops feelings for Lily. But there's competition, as Billy is convinced that Lily is his, so she's caught in the middle. A love triangle of sorts. What will happen? Read and you'll find out. You'll have to be patient, though.
So why wasn't I completely charmed by this novel? I think it was the tone, the alternate POVs, written in the first person, that didn't quite do it for me. I never really felt the magic, pardon the pun, I didn't feel connected or too engaged with the characters, where I should have, but for most of it, I felt completely detached. It could have been just me, as the novel is competently written, although something felt amiss. Nevertheless, it's a promising debut novel, although it didn't quite hit the mark.
I've received this novel via NetGalley, thanks to HarperCollins Australia for the opportunity to read and review.
Cover: 5 stars + - absolutely gorgeous!
The novel is about three displaced young people, who find themselves in the interbellum Sydney. One of them is Ari, a Jewish young man, who's escaped the Russian pogrom and is living in Sydney with his very strict, rabbi uncle. Ari is fascinated by magic and by Houdini. The other male protagonist, who's also one of the narrators in the novel, is Billy, a WWI veteran, who's cocky, sneaky and a ladies' man of sorts. Then there's Lily, who's a young albino woman, with a mysterious past. She's got a way with birds.
So Lily and Ari decide to create a magic act, so they gather few birds. The innocent, shy Ari develops feelings for Lily. But there's competition, as Billy is convinced that Lily is his, so she's caught in the middle. A love triangle of sorts. What will happen? Read and you'll find out. You'll have to be patient, though.
So why wasn't I completely charmed by this novel? I think it was the tone, the alternate POVs, written in the first person, that didn't quite do it for me. I never really felt the magic, pardon the pun, I didn't feel connected or too engaged with the characters, where I should have, but for most of it, I felt completely detached. It could have been just me, as the novel is competently written, although something felt amiss. Nevertheless, it's a promising debut novel, although it didn't quite hit the mark.
I've received this novel via NetGalley, thanks to HarperCollins Australia for the opportunity to read and review.
Cover: 5 stars + - absolutely gorgeous!
June 10, 2020
The thought which most pervades my mind concerning this book is that I would never willingly read it again.
Because I have so many complaints, I'll begin with what I enjoyed. Namely, who. Ari was a delightful character to read about with such an interesting history. Being Jewish, a pogrom orphan, escaped from Russia in a trunk on a ship and ending up raised in Australia with his Uncle and Aunt, his story is full of heartbreak. The childish innocence of making Houdini his father figure because his own had died before his birth is so bittersweet. I found the development of his relationship with his Uncle in the last third of the book to be genuinely warming, and I could have cried for him when his Aunt revealed the truth to him about his mother and father and their suffering. I thought that how they had taken him in was also so lovely, especially when his uncle called him his "heart's child." If I could have had it my way, the last scene wouldn't have been of Ari and Lily, but of him and his Aunt and Uncle, praying together at his Uncle's bedside and finally remedying the heartbreak his family had felt.
Although, if I could have had it my way, this book wouldn't have been primarily a love story. It would have been a 300 page max account of Ari's life up until meeting Lily, his love for her growing and developing in that delightful way that first loves are supposed to be in romance books, and then being thwarted by Billy who also would have been a complex and morally-grey character.
My main complaints are these:
- Lily is an extremely underdeveloped character compared to Billy and Ari. Her back story is so interesting, and as an albino woman I would have loved to hear more about how people treated her as a result. However, she lacks a distinctive narrative voice, perhaps because she only actually has her own chapters in parts 2 and 3 and her perspective isn't established in part 1 where the three of them meet. Because of this, it feels like Billy and Ari's chapters are much more important than hers. I would have liked to have seen her first impression of the two as she met them, instead of just hearing them gush over how beautiful she was. If anything, she feels a little bit like a prop and not a character.
- Lily and Ari's romance is so underdeveloped and instead Billy's obsessive/possessive infatuation is written about over and over again in borderline sickening metaphors and similes. I would have loved to see scenes of the two of them working on their magic act. The beach scene was so rushed and could have been ten times longer. The author is great at being descriptive, but seemed to forget that when it came to the beach scene and surmised the whole thing in two paragraphs, including their first kiss which should have been the epitome of romantic given this is basically a romance novel. Because their romance is so under-cooked, it's strange that when Ari leaves, Lily for some reason doesn't know what to do with her life. Yes, the two can no longer continue their magic act, however they had only kissed a day beforehand. I think the book tries hard to be romantic, but the romance isn't even focused on or developed to make you want them to be together. The only thing I wanted was for Billy and Lily NOT to be together, it wouldn't have mattered to me if she ended up with Ari or single.
- Billy is absolutely disgusting from start to finish and I think it does the book more harm than good that his POV is the first we read. I felt uncomfortable with the book then and there and was tempted to put it down. It's terribly misleading because the book blurb reads like Ari and Lily are an established relationship and then Billy comes into the picture, but actually the romance is the kind of corny love triangle I thought we had abandoned back in 2013. Billy is obviously supposed to be the bad guy, Ari the good guy, and Lily the girl shoved back and forth between them. Billy's actions, including his sexual assault of Lily, his obvious obsessive and possessiveness, and his anti-antisemitism and violent attack on Ari all go unpunished because Billy commits suicide in this weird pseudo-tragic hero ending where he decides that the best place for him is with the mother whose name he doesn't know until the second to last page of his last chapter. If this is an attempt at a redemption arc, it's badly done and reads like an easy way out. I think the author tried to make Billy a complex character in this last chapter, but because this wasn't reflected throughout it just felt completely off and I felt no sympathy for him.
- Be prepared to suspend your belief. The book is told in a mix of flashback and forward, but the present day plot is pretty bland up until Ari's uncle goes missing and the circumstances surrounding that are nonsensical, as is his rescue. All the characters back stories are much more interesting than their present day. The setting is also pretty superficial. The book is supposed to be set in Australia in 1929 but honestly the time period is just for convenience. The author wanted to write about people dying and Jews being expelled from Europe so the historical aspects are fitting to the character's backstories but aside from that the book lacks details which imply that it is set in the 1920s and the characters do not speak as if they are from that particular time period either.
- I would have loved to know more about Miss Du Maurier, who takes in the three displaced teenagers and helps them fashion a home. She was another character through which the plot operated, and was portrayed as just some ditsy, silly woman living in the past. She also conveniently disappeared for much of the third part of the book. She was one of the only characters outside of the love triangle who could have rightly called out Billy's problematic behaviour and advances towards Lily but apparently she is supposed to be so out of it that she can't understand?
- A lot of convenient time skipping e.g. skips over Ari and Lily actually practising the magic act. I mean we don't even know that they've signed up to audition somewhere until Miss DM asks when the audition is...seems like a missed opportunity to see their romance blossom.
- The ending is...so bad? Are we supposed to feel like everything is okay and solved now because Ari and Lily are back together? So Lily can go back to hiding inside his shadow?
- The moment when Billy, the antisemitic man he is, finds out that he's Jewish and seems to realise for the first time that he's circumcised...I was honestly laughing. Has this man never seen it before? And then he gets angry because that makes him similar to Ari...as if he didn't already know? ....
- AND NOW MY BIGGEST COMPLAINT: Lily is a sexual assault survivor. Yet the author tries to spin Billy's very non-consensual kiss (from which she pushes him away and sits down next to Ari "trembling") as romantic. Lily finds the "demanding" feeling of his lips alluring. And in the next paragraph, talks about how her first kiss came in the form of a sexual assault which forced her to leave home. This. Is. Not. Okay. I was so disgusted. I felt so uncomfortable reading on, especially to page 284, where Billy makes her feel like, because she exposed her body to an audience, her body is "tainted." Then on page 310, he drugs her. Then Lily is sexually assaulted by Billy. She escapes him, (Miss DM is curiously nowhere in sight), then apparently Billy is trapped in time and does nothing for a while because Lily decides that this sexual assault has empowered her so much that she's off to do a magic show (...her reaction is so stilted and unnatural.) Then Billy sees Ari and has the corniest fight imaginable with him. Ari returns to Lily sleeping in his bed, she kisses him, and apparently there everything is now okay. There is literally no attempt at realism anywhere within this book. Not even MAGICAL REALISM which would have made this book interesting.
- RE: the corny fight. On page 352, Billy attacks Ari violently. When Ari gets the upper hand he yells "abracadabra" at Billy? What? The violence felt so random, and Ari is literally unbothered by the fact that his hair has been crudely cut off and he's nearly died and just wants to find Lily.
- This book hurtles towards an ending and all the action happens in the last 100 pages. Of a nearly 400 page book. This book is like 200 pages of set-up and back story. Why not just make the story about characters on their journey to converge together at Miss DM's and then the ensuing action. We could have lived their backstories instead of having them recounted to us and the novel would have been 400-500 pages still.
I thought this book was going to be like The Diviners, and I thought that if I could sit through that tome of a book I would be able to read this and find something to enjoy about it. The only reason that I gave this 2 stars was because I loved Ari and his perspective and back story. He appealed to the part of me which loves lost, tender, gentle boys. He was shy and a little traumatised and he really just wanted to follow his childish dreams and I couldn't help but feel endeared by his affection for Lily, because it felt genuine.
So yeah. This is one of the worst books I've read in the last three months. Love you Ari, though. At least I read it quickly.
Because I have so many complaints, I'll begin with what I enjoyed. Namely, who. Ari was a delightful character to read about with such an interesting history. Being Jewish, a pogrom orphan, escaped from Russia in a trunk on a ship and ending up raised in Australia with his Uncle and Aunt, his story is full of heartbreak. The childish innocence of making Houdini his father figure because his own had died before his birth is so bittersweet. I found the development of his relationship with his Uncle in the last third of the book to be genuinely warming, and I could have cried for him when his Aunt revealed the truth to him about his mother and father and their suffering. I thought that how they had taken him in was also so lovely, especially when his uncle called him his "heart's child." If I could have had it my way, the last scene wouldn't have been of Ari and Lily, but of him and his Aunt and Uncle, praying together at his Uncle's bedside and finally remedying the heartbreak his family had felt.
Although, if I could have had it my way, this book wouldn't have been primarily a love story. It would have been a 300 page max account of Ari's life up until meeting Lily, his love for her growing and developing in that delightful way that first loves are supposed to be in romance books, and then being thwarted by Billy who also would have been a complex and morally-grey character.
My main complaints are these:
- Lily is an extremely underdeveloped character compared to Billy and Ari. Her back story is so interesting, and as an albino woman I would have loved to hear more about how people treated her as a result. However, she lacks a distinctive narrative voice, perhaps because she only actually has her own chapters in parts 2 and 3 and her perspective isn't established in part 1 where the three of them meet. Because of this, it feels like Billy and Ari's chapters are much more important than hers. I would have liked to have seen her first impression of the two as she met them, instead of just hearing them gush over how beautiful she was. If anything, she feels a little bit like a prop and not a character.
- Lily and Ari's romance is so underdeveloped and instead Billy's obsessive/possessive infatuation is written about over and over again in borderline sickening metaphors and similes. I would have loved to see scenes of the two of them working on their magic act. The beach scene was so rushed and could have been ten times longer. The author is great at being descriptive, but seemed to forget that when it came to the beach scene and surmised the whole thing in two paragraphs, including their first kiss which should have been the epitome of romantic given this is basically a romance novel. Because their romance is so under-cooked, it's strange that when Ari leaves, Lily for some reason doesn't know what to do with her life. Yes, the two can no longer continue their magic act, however they had only kissed a day beforehand. I think the book tries hard to be romantic, but the romance isn't even focused on or developed to make you want them to be together. The only thing I wanted was for Billy and Lily NOT to be together, it wouldn't have mattered to me if she ended up with Ari or single.
- Billy is absolutely disgusting from start to finish and I think it does the book more harm than good that his POV is the first we read. I felt uncomfortable with the book then and there and was tempted to put it down. It's terribly misleading because the book blurb reads like Ari and Lily are an established relationship and then Billy comes into the picture, but actually the romance is the kind of corny love triangle I thought we had abandoned back in 2013. Billy is obviously supposed to be the bad guy, Ari the good guy, and Lily the girl shoved back and forth between them. Billy's actions, including his sexual assault of Lily, his obvious obsessive and possessiveness, and his anti-antisemitism and violent attack on Ari all go unpunished because Billy commits suicide in this weird pseudo-tragic hero ending where he decides that the best place for him is with the mother whose name he doesn't know until the second to last page of his last chapter. If this is an attempt at a redemption arc, it's badly done and reads like an easy way out. I think the author tried to make Billy a complex character in this last chapter, but because this wasn't reflected throughout it just felt completely off and I felt no sympathy for him.
- Be prepared to suspend your belief. The book is told in a mix of flashback and forward, but the present day plot is pretty bland up until Ari's uncle goes missing and the circumstances surrounding that are nonsensical, as is his rescue. All the characters back stories are much more interesting than their present day. The setting is also pretty superficial. The book is supposed to be set in Australia in 1929 but honestly the time period is just for convenience. The author wanted to write about people dying and Jews being expelled from Europe so the historical aspects are fitting to the character's backstories but aside from that the book lacks details which imply that it is set in the 1920s and the characters do not speak as if they are from that particular time period either.
- I would have loved to know more about Miss Du Maurier, who takes in the three displaced teenagers and helps them fashion a home. She was another character through which the plot operated, and was portrayed as just some ditsy, silly woman living in the past. She also conveniently disappeared for much of the third part of the book. She was one of the only characters outside of the love triangle who could have rightly called out Billy's problematic behaviour and advances towards Lily but apparently she is supposed to be so out of it that she can't understand?
- A lot of convenient time skipping e.g. skips over Ari and Lily actually practising the magic act. I mean we don't even know that they've signed up to audition somewhere until Miss DM asks when the audition is...seems like a missed opportunity to see their romance blossom.
- The ending is...so bad? Are we supposed to feel like everything is okay and solved now because Ari and Lily are back together? So Lily can go back to hiding inside his shadow?
- The moment when Billy, the antisemitic man he is, finds out that he's Jewish and seems to realise for the first time that he's circumcised...I was honestly laughing. Has this man never seen it before? And then he gets angry because that makes him similar to Ari...as if he didn't already know? ....
- AND NOW MY BIGGEST COMPLAINT: Lily is a sexual assault survivor. Yet the author tries to spin Billy's very non-consensual kiss (from which she pushes him away and sits down next to Ari "trembling") as romantic. Lily finds the "demanding" feeling of his lips alluring. And in the next paragraph, talks about how her first kiss came in the form of a sexual assault which forced her to leave home. This. Is. Not. Okay. I was so disgusted. I felt so uncomfortable reading on, especially to page 284, where Billy makes her feel like, because she exposed her body to an audience, her body is "tainted." Then on page 310, he drugs her. Then Lily is sexually assaulted by Billy. She escapes him, (Miss DM is curiously nowhere in sight), then apparently Billy is trapped in time and does nothing for a while because Lily decides that this sexual assault has empowered her so much that she's off to do a magic show (...her reaction is so stilted and unnatural.) Then Billy sees Ari and has the corniest fight imaginable with him. Ari returns to Lily sleeping in his bed, she kisses him, and apparently there everything is now okay. There is literally no attempt at realism anywhere within this book. Not even MAGICAL REALISM which would have made this book interesting.
- RE: the corny fight. On page 352, Billy attacks Ari violently. When Ari gets the upper hand he yells "abracadabra" at Billy? What? The violence felt so random, and Ari is literally unbothered by the fact that his hair has been crudely cut off and he's nearly died and just wants to find Lily.
- This book hurtles towards an ending and all the action happens in the last 100 pages. Of a nearly 400 page book. This book is like 200 pages of set-up and back story. Why not just make the story about characters on their journey to converge together at Miss DM's and then the ensuing action. We could have lived their backstories instead of having them recounted to us and the novel would have been 400-500 pages still.
I thought this book was going to be like The Diviners, and I thought that if I could sit through that tome of a book I would be able to read this and find something to enjoy about it. The only reason that I gave this 2 stars was because I loved Ari and his perspective and back story. He appealed to the part of me which loves lost, tender, gentle boys. He was shy and a little traumatised and he really just wanted to follow his childish dreams and I couldn't help but feel endeared by his affection for Lily, because it felt genuine.
So yeah. This is one of the worst books I've read in the last three months. Love you Ari, though. At least I read it quickly.
October 1, 2016
The Bird's Child, by Sandra Leigh Price, is a magical tale of wonder, illusion, deception, belonging and love, all set in Sydney in 1929. The story revolves around three main characters: Ari is a young Jewish man, an orphan, who escaped the pogroms with nothing but a strange tattoo of the word Abracadabra on his hand. Raised by his strict Jewish relatives, the tattoo is seen as a mark of evil or punishment, and Ari's dream of following in the footsteps of his hero, Houdini, and performing magic, is frowned upon, particularly by his aunt and uncle. Lily is a beautiful, enigmatic girl who charms the birds from the trees and inspires love and lust in all who meet her. And then there is Billy - a malevolent and violent character whose selfish nature and misogynist attitudes are stifling and frightening. The three meet at the home turned boarding house of Miss du Maurier, where their personalities, their histories, their objectives and their desires unfurl and clash.
There are many charming aspects to this novel, and along with the historical setting, it put me in the mind of such books as The Night Circus and The Museum of Extraordinary Things. Nature, the Australian bush, and particularly the birdlife are all depicted in vivid and detailed description; all are symbolic. A little indigenous history is woven into the story in an interesting and respectful way. And the depth of knowledge of Jewish history and culture is compelling.
This novel is original and haunting. It is both a gently unfolding love story, and a suspenseful mystery; it is a search for identity and a tale of being found and belonging.
Particularly in the second half of the book, the pace and tension are maintained by each new chapter being narrated by a different character, taking over from the last scene of the previous narration - this keeps you turning the pages, eager to see what will happen next.
At times I found the language overly heavy in its descriptions; at times I found it difficult to keep hold of the thread of the story. There are so many histories being unwrapped, like layers of an onion skin; each of the characters has flashbacks to their childhood and to the circumstances that brought them to the present, and this was quite complex and convoluted. But the story is compelling and fascinating, and the historical setting - both of the 'present' (1929) and of the past (dating back to the First World War) - provides a beguiling and wondrous premise, with a dark and sinister backdrop. This is an ambitious book, with the secrets of history and the wonder of dreams moving it forward.
There are many charming aspects to this novel, and along with the historical setting, it put me in the mind of such books as The Night Circus and The Museum of Extraordinary Things. Nature, the Australian bush, and particularly the birdlife are all depicted in vivid and detailed description; all are symbolic. A little indigenous history is woven into the story in an interesting and respectful way. And the depth of knowledge of Jewish history and culture is compelling.
This novel is original and haunting. It is both a gently unfolding love story, and a suspenseful mystery; it is a search for identity and a tale of being found and belonging.
Particularly in the second half of the book, the pace and tension are maintained by each new chapter being narrated by a different character, taking over from the last scene of the previous narration - this keeps you turning the pages, eager to see what will happen next.
At times I found the language overly heavy in its descriptions; at times I found it difficult to keep hold of the thread of the story. There are so many histories being unwrapped, like layers of an onion skin; each of the characters has flashbacks to their childhood and to the circumstances that brought them to the present, and this was quite complex and convoluted. But the story is compelling and fascinating, and the historical setting - both of the 'present' (1929) and of the past (dating back to the First World War) - provides a beguiling and wondrous premise, with a dark and sinister backdrop. This is an ambitious book, with the secrets of history and the wonder of dreams moving it forward.
January 12, 2018
Well. That was disappointing.
Maybe I should stop picking up random books at second hand book fairs that I've never heard anyone talk about before, but the synopsis was just so intriguing and sounded like something I would absolutely adore.
Spoiler: I didn't.
This book is not magical realism. It really sounds like magical realism but it isn't, and maybe it's my problem for having the wrong expectations of what this book would be about? But that's definitely got something to do with why I didn't really like it.
We follow three main characters in Sydney, 1929 - Ari, a Jewish orphan who lives with his uncle and aunt, who longs to be a magician and secretly believes (or dreams) that his real father is Houdini; Lily, who moved from the countryside to escape her small town; and Billy, who survived World War 1 and is described by the synopsis as a "charming, enigmatic but dangerous stranger" or some shit but he's just. A really fucked up character. It was really uncomfortable to read from his perspective because he's a super racist, misogynistic, homophobic excuse for a human being and he is obsessed with Lily and believes that she is destined to be with him. Ugh. Reading from his perspective was just so uncomfortable, and it's not like his actions are approved by the narrative in any way, but I really could not enjoy reading this story. Then there's this weird love triangle between the characters and everything about this book was honestly just kind of a mess.
It's basically half flashback, half present day interactions between the three characters. And the problem was that the flashbacks were so much more interesting than the present day stuff. I was fascinated by the histories of these characters and what happened to them as they were growing up that changed who they fundamentally were, and the slow reveals of bits and pieces of these characters' lives were just so interesting. But unfortunately that's just half the book. The present day stuff was frustratingly slow, there's hardly a plot holding the book together and even the relationship between Ari and Lily felt kind of awkward and unconvincing. I don't know. I only read this less than two weeks ago and I'm already forgetting huge chunks of it, so it obviously wasn't very memorable.
Really quite disappointed in this one and I feel really let down by the synopsis. IT'S NOT MAGICAL REALISM. 2.5 stars for the interesting backstories and I'm generously rounding up, but there wasn't much else worth reading this book for. One day I will find the perfect synopsis that ends up being for the perfect book, but this wasn't it.
Maybe I should stop picking up random books at second hand book fairs that I've never heard anyone talk about before, but the synopsis was just so intriguing and sounded like something I would absolutely adore.
Spoiler: I didn't.
This book is not magical realism. It really sounds like magical realism but it isn't, and maybe it's my problem for having the wrong expectations of what this book would be about? But that's definitely got something to do with why I didn't really like it.
We follow three main characters in Sydney, 1929 - Ari, a Jewish orphan who lives with his uncle and aunt, who longs to be a magician and secretly believes (or dreams) that his real father is Houdini; Lily, who moved from the countryside to escape her small town; and Billy, who survived World War 1 and is described by the synopsis as a "charming, enigmatic but dangerous stranger" or some shit but he's just. A really fucked up character. It was really uncomfortable to read from his perspective because he's a super racist, misogynistic, homophobic excuse for a human being and he is obsessed with Lily and believes that she is destined to be with him. Ugh. Reading from his perspective was just so uncomfortable, and it's not like his actions are approved by the narrative in any way, but I really could not enjoy reading this story. Then there's this weird love triangle between the characters and everything about this book was honestly just kind of a mess.
It's basically half flashback, half present day interactions between the three characters. And the problem was that the flashbacks were so much more interesting than the present day stuff. I was fascinated by the histories of these characters and what happened to them as they were growing up that changed who they fundamentally were, and the slow reveals of bits and pieces of these characters' lives were just so interesting. But unfortunately that's just half the book. The present day stuff was frustratingly slow, there's hardly a plot holding the book together and even the relationship between Ari and Lily felt kind of awkward and unconvincing. I don't know. I only read this less than two weeks ago and I'm already forgetting huge chunks of it, so it obviously wasn't very memorable.
Really quite disappointed in this one and I feel really let down by the synopsis. IT'S NOT MAGICAL REALISM. 2.5 stars for the interesting backstories and I'm generously rounding up, but there wasn't much else worth reading this book for. One day I will find the perfect synopsis that ends up being for the perfect book, but this wasn't it.
July 5, 2018
I liked the premise of this book and I think separately the three main characters' back stories that were intertwined with the main narrative would have been very interesting. I found the book dragged quite a bit though. None of the storylines were fleshed out enough for me to be truly invested in them.
February 10, 2018
I liked the way the stories unfolded.
November 16, 2021
An interesting book of magic, and love in its forms of jealousy, coercion and hopefulness.
June 2, 2015
Moreso 3.5 stars.
Initial impressions: The Birds's Childs cover illustration is stunning - the most beautiful book I've seen in a long time.
However, this story is not overall what I'd expected from the jacket text. Which, to my reading taste, was a good thing. I am not really a magic or romance buff. But despite the flowery language on the jacket, it was quite a gritty read. I found the first few chapters somewhat of a struggle. The excess use of adjectives and repetition of notions were hard to wade through. And as the first half of the book is 1st person narrative of both male main characters, I tended to think Lily's character suffered for it - she was not nearly as tangible a character come the end of the book as the male leads which was a shame. That aside, the read became smoother and more enjoyable the deeper into the the characters lives each chapter delved.
The story follows three main characters: Billy, Ari and the much coveted beauty - Lily. All three have been molded by their difficult childhoods: blemished in varying ways by war, grief, mistreatment/neglect and loss. All are looking for their place in their post-war world and for love. But can this happen when you don't even know who you really are? As their pasts unfold and the present entwines each with the other, rivalries bubble to the surface, characters are strengthened, secrets are uncovered and none of it is entirely predictable.
I love how each character is a misfit in their own completely unique way. The Jewish overtones - the Hebrew language, love love love. And the authors depiction of the Australian landscape. By far the most enjoyed aspect of this book is the birds!!! Their depiction is a delight.
Initial impressions: The Birds's Childs cover illustration is stunning - the most beautiful book I've seen in a long time.
However, this story is not overall what I'd expected from the jacket text. Which, to my reading taste, was a good thing. I am not really a magic or romance buff. But despite the flowery language on the jacket, it was quite a gritty read. I found the first few chapters somewhat of a struggle. The excess use of adjectives and repetition of notions were hard to wade through. And as the first half of the book is 1st person narrative of both male main characters, I tended to think Lily's character suffered for it - she was not nearly as tangible a character come the end of the book as the male leads which was a shame. That aside, the read became smoother and more enjoyable the deeper into the the characters lives each chapter delved.
The story follows three main characters: Billy, Ari and the much coveted beauty - Lily. All three have been molded by their difficult childhoods: blemished in varying ways by war, grief, mistreatment/neglect and loss. All are looking for their place in their post-war world and for love. But can this happen when you don't even know who you really are? As their pasts unfold and the present entwines each with the other, rivalries bubble to the surface, characters are strengthened, secrets are uncovered and none of it is entirely predictable.
I love how each character is a misfit in their own completely unique way. The Jewish overtones - the Hebrew language, love love love. And the authors depiction of the Australian landscape. By far the most enjoyed aspect of this book is the birds!!! Their depiction is a delight.
June 10, 2015
A richly woven book, alternating narratives first between Ari, a Jewish man torn between faith and magic, and Billy, a drifter with villainous motives; before adding the source of their ultimate conflict - Lily, a young woman escaping a past. Strong themes of birds, faith, magic, song, literature and the moon abound. Sometimes I felt it was a bit heavy handed and over-powering in use of themes and symbols - for example when Billy has a bath we get the symbolism of baptism without it having to be stated, the raven/dove analogy didn't need to be explained so much, but that did not distract from the fact that by the time I read to part two I was committed. I liked that it was set in Sydney, Newtown and Blue Mountains; it was great to reimagine these places in 1929. Lots of small but potent set ups and pay offs; the locked suitcase, Ari's Uncle Israel's scrapbook, Lily's scars, Billy's unknown mother, unsent & unopened letters. The alternating narratives were very well crafted, concealing and revealing without too much retracing, though occasionally slowed the pace. The flashbacks were well written and sat in the story without labour. Each of the three main characters had a lot of backstory so the potential for there to be too much happening was strong, but Sandra Leigh Price handled the plots well. The ending was timely and lovely (a rare thing). The novel was as beautiful as it's cover designed by Matt Stanton.
August 16, 2015
If you are looking for a book to read that is gritty and realistic, then don't read it. This book is almost like a fairy story in some ways. It is full of magic, symbolism and a hint of mysticism. I must admit, it took a little while to get into it. I figured out that the key to this book is to completely suspend disbelief. If you can do that, then it all falls into place.
At its heart it is a novel about magic, spells and dreams wrapped up in a love triangle. The tension in the novel is its exploration of when the search for this magic moves into sinister manipulation. Another important theme is the finding of one's place in the world by understanding your past. This is a big part of what drives the characters in the book and determines whether they do find magic in their lives. Interestingly, the characters who are able to embrace their past in all its warts and glory, are the ones who ultimately find their life full of magic.
Once I was into the book, I found it really well paced and easy to read. No dull patches where my mind wandered. While most of the twists in the story were reasonably well telegraphed, the whimsical magic of it coupled with the dread of the manipulation being worked on the characters made me want to see what the author had in store for them.
And yes, it does have a happy ending. So if you want something graphic with a punch, don't pick it up. But if you are ready to suspend your disbelief then by all means pick it up and read it.
At its heart it is a novel about magic, spells and dreams wrapped up in a love triangle. The tension in the novel is its exploration of when the search for this magic moves into sinister manipulation. Another important theme is the finding of one's place in the world by understanding your past. This is a big part of what drives the characters in the book and determines whether they do find magic in their lives. Interestingly, the characters who are able to embrace their past in all its warts and glory, are the ones who ultimately find their life full of magic.
Once I was into the book, I found it really well paced and easy to read. No dull patches where my mind wandered. While most of the twists in the story were reasonably well telegraphed, the whimsical magic of it coupled with the dread of the manipulation being worked on the characters made me want to see what the author had in store for them.
And yes, it does have a happy ending. So if you want something graphic with a punch, don't pick it up. But if you are ready to suspend your disbelief then by all means pick it up and read it.
September 18, 2015
I thought the story line was interesting, being set in Newtown NSW a plus. Got a little lost in places (my fault as I was travelling at the time so dijointed periods reading).
Billy, Ari and Lily were intriguing and I was always wanting to know how the story would end.
Billy, Ari and Lily were intriguing and I was always wanting to know how the story would end.
December 21, 2016
Great depiction of Newtown and Australia in the late 1920's. You'll also learn a bit about jewish culture and process. At heart it's a touching tale, a good story. The birds and their trainers are enchanting and the malevolent force in the story is compelling too.
October 3, 2015
wow, what a roller coaster… lots of built up tension, then an ending that brings that all to a screaming close. wonderful study of cultures and how they mix.
September 30, 2015
a tale of magic, illusion and magick. wonderful.....
June 27, 2016
Another excellent story from a new Australian author. This is the difference between formulaic and original stories.Sandra Leigh Price has set herself an extraordinary high bar.
February 2, 2016
Gorgeous, rich and enchanting writing. Can't wait to read what Sandra Leigh Price writes next.
June 27, 2016
I enjoyed the structure - each chapter is told by one of the three characters as their lives intertwine and tension builds. Perhaps the ending is too tidy?
abandoned
May 23, 2015Just not my kind of book.
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