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The Boy With a Bird in His Chest
Though Owen Tanner has never met anyone else who has a chatty bird in their chest, medical forums would call him a Terror. From the moment Gail emerged between Owen’s ribs, his mother knew that she had to hide him away from the world. After a decade spent in hiding, Owen takes a brazen trip outdoors in the middle of a forest fire, and his life is upended forever.
Suddenly, Owen is forced to flee the home that had once felt so confining and hide in plain sight with his uncle and cousin in Washington. There, he feels the joy of finding a family among friends; of sharing the bird in his chest and being embraced fully; of falling in love and feeling the devastating heartbreak of rejection before finding a spark of happiness in the most unexpected place; of living his truth regardless of how hard the thieves of joy may try to tear him down. But the threat of the Army of Acronyms is a constant, looming presence, making Owen wonder if he’ll ever find a way out of the cycle of fear.
A heartbreaking yet hopeful novel about the things that make us unique and lovable, The Boy with a Bird in His Chest grapples with the fear, depression, and feelings of isolation that come with believing that we will never be loved, let alone accepted, for who we truly are, and learning to live fully and openly regardless.
Suddenly, Owen is forced to flee the home that had once felt so confining and hide in plain sight with his uncle and cousin in Washington. There, he feels the joy of finding a family among friends; of sharing the bird in his chest and being embraced fully; of falling in love and feeling the devastating heartbreak of rejection before finding a spark of happiness in the most unexpected place; of living his truth regardless of how hard the thieves of joy may try to tear him down. But the threat of the Army of Acronyms is a constant, looming presence, making Owen wonder if he’ll ever find a way out of the cycle of fear.
A heartbreaking yet hopeful novel about the things that make us unique and lovable, The Boy with a Bird in His Chest grapples with the fear, depression, and feelings of isolation that come with believing that we will never be loved, let alone accepted, for who we truly are, and learning to live fully and openly regardless.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published February 15, 2022
191 people are currently reading
14425 people want to read
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January 31, 2022
4.5 Stars
A beautifully shared coming-of-age story of the anguish of young love shared through a mystical, magical journey of a young boy named Owen who lives with a bird inside his chest. A bird who chatters away when she has an opinion she finds it necessary to share. After all, he is her home.
There’s an old saying that home is where the heart is, and for this java sparrow named Gail, his body is her home. Gail wants to sing her story to the world, which, of course, isn’t safe for Owen. Ever since his mother knew about the bird she understood that it was something she had to help Owen appreciate that he must keep it a secret - just between the two of them. It doesn’t help their situation that there’s a doctor looking for them that knows about the bird in his chest. It is a rare condition, but a person with this condition is referred to as a Terror. The doctor searches all the online forums for help locating Owen, which places Owen in even more danger, so his mother sends him to live with his uncle and cousin in Washington.
There, he lives a life he never had before. He attends school, and endeavors to navigate this new life, after spending most of his life hidden away inside the home where he’d lived with his mother. His life has changed, and slowly he begins to find himself opening up to others. First his cousin Tennessee, and as time passes he lets others in, and while he isn’t always accepted by those who can’t tolerate those who are ‘different,’ he realizes that he isn’t alone in how he wants to be seen. But, in finally being seen, he opens himself to be rejected by those who are intolerant of his differences, and who let it be known, as well.
At times this is heartbreaking, the cruelty he endures by those who fear what makes him ‘different’- as though it were contagious. But the heartbreaking moments are balanced by love, and his realization that there are enough people that do love him, without conditions. It is then that he fully allows himself to believe in following his dreams, and living this life - the one he chose.
Shared through a sprinkling of magical realism, this debut shares a tale of love, as well as a love story, a story of living a life fully by embracing your truths, and finding those who truly love you for who you are.
Pub Date: 15 Feb 2022
Many thanks for the ARC provided by Atria Books
#Boywithabird #NetGalley
A beautifully shared coming-of-age story of the anguish of young love shared through a mystical, magical journey of a young boy named Owen who lives with a bird inside his chest. A bird who chatters away when she has an opinion she finds it necessary to share. After all, he is her home.
There’s an old saying that home is where the heart is, and for this java sparrow named Gail, his body is her home. Gail wants to sing her story to the world, which, of course, isn’t safe for Owen. Ever since his mother knew about the bird she understood that it was something she had to help Owen appreciate that he must keep it a secret - just between the two of them. It doesn’t help their situation that there’s a doctor looking for them that knows about the bird in his chest. It is a rare condition, but a person with this condition is referred to as a Terror. The doctor searches all the online forums for help locating Owen, which places Owen in even more danger, so his mother sends him to live with his uncle and cousin in Washington.
There, he lives a life he never had before. He attends school, and endeavors to navigate this new life, after spending most of his life hidden away inside the home where he’d lived with his mother. His life has changed, and slowly he begins to find himself opening up to others. First his cousin Tennessee, and as time passes he lets others in, and while he isn’t always accepted by those who can’t tolerate those who are ‘different,’ he realizes that he isn’t alone in how he wants to be seen. But, in finally being seen, he opens himself to be rejected by those who are intolerant of his differences, and who let it be known, as well.
At times this is heartbreaking, the cruelty he endures by those who fear what makes him ‘different’- as though it were contagious. But the heartbreaking moments are balanced by love, and his realization that there are enough people that do love him, without conditions. It is then that he fully allows himself to believe in following his dreams, and living this life - the one he chose.
Shared through a sprinkling of magical realism, this debut shares a tale of love, as well as a love story, a story of living a life fully by embracing your truths, and finding those who truly love you for who you are.
Pub Date: 15 Feb 2022
Many thanks for the ARC provided by Atria Books
#Boywithabird #NetGalley
January 11, 2022
I usually stick with thrillers and mysteries, but the synopsis of
The Boy With a Bird in His Chest
was just too interesting for me to overlook this book and I am so glad that I did because, wow. Emme Lund's debut novel is heartbreaking, yet heartwarming; powerful, yet vulnerable; with magic realism that can also resonate with readers.
Owen Tanner was born with a bird (aptly named Gail) in his chest, but you wouldn't know it. His mother told Owen at an early age to hide Gail and never let anyone know she exists. Society would call Owen a Terror and the medical community would want Owen committed. Owen grows up hiding this big secret, until it is found out and Owen has to feel. Throughout the book, readers will see Owen's journey balancing life and Gail, but ultimately Owen must make a decision. Will Owen embrace this bird in his chest, will Owen allow others into his life, and how will Owen be able to battle his own demons?
This book will make you cry. Warning. This book deals with a lot of sensitive topics, such as sexuality, gender, bullying with violence, and family dynamics and acceptance. I quite honestly loved all of the characters, which never happens to me. Not only are Owen and Gail amazing protagonists, I loved Clyde and Tennessee as well! I read this book in one sitting, which always means that it's a hit for me. If you like Fredrik Backman's books, you'll love The Boy With a Bird in His Chest .
Owen Tanner was born with a bird (aptly named Gail) in his chest, but you wouldn't know it. His mother told Owen at an early age to hide Gail and never let anyone know she exists. Society would call Owen a Terror and the medical community would want Owen committed. Owen grows up hiding this big secret, until it is found out and Owen has to feel. Throughout the book, readers will see Owen's journey balancing life and Gail, but ultimately Owen must make a decision. Will Owen embrace this bird in his chest, will Owen allow others into his life, and how will Owen be able to battle his own demons?
This book will make you cry. Warning. This book deals with a lot of sensitive topics, such as sexuality, gender, bullying with violence, and family dynamics and acceptance. I quite honestly loved all of the characters, which never happens to me. Not only are Owen and Gail amazing protagonists, I loved Clyde and Tennessee as well! I read this book in one sitting, which always means that it's a hit for me. If you like Fredrik Backman's books, you'll love The Boy With a Bird in His Chest .
March 14, 2022
Now I’m the boy with this book in his chest forever
January 5, 2023
It is important to note that the majority of the themes explored in this book deal with sensitive subject matters. My review, therefore, touches on these topics as well. Many people might find the subject matters of the book as well as those detailed in my review overwhelming. I would suggest you steer clear of both if this is the case. Please note that from this point forward I will be writing about matters which contain reflections on child endangerment, sexual acts (performed by minors), parental neglect, crimes motivated by bigotry, & others.
Owen has spent the entirety of his conscious life hidden; burrowed away from the world because his mother is convinced that it has nothing but terror to offer her son, the boy known as a Terror due to the very real bird that has grown within the layers of his ribcage. Owen is sensitive to those around him as much as he is to his own emotional turmoil, due to sharing a physical body with an entity all their own; he has manoeuvred through life, a place in which people can be two-in-one while being wholly singular. How swiftly the weighted word anchors itself to our hearts. How delirious the memory of a decadent story can render us to become. How bewilderingly breathtaking it is to read a story about a boy with a bird in his chest who reminds us that the heart can be as full of good memories as the mind.
Lund has exquisitely crafted a story so sickly sweet that I truly & very overwhelmingly adored every aspect of it. I must first begin this review with praise for the author as the prose that was employed throughout this book was wonderful. Reading this book was like walking through life with blue-coloured glasses; everything carried a weight of morose sorrow with a hint of hope that wafted through the vast shades of blue. I was instantly hooked on Lund’s writing style, as I very much enjoy writing that seeks to craft a scene; showing, leading a reader down to a murky lake only to allow them to place themselves in the scene before beginning to exude the series of events that transpire in such a place.
I acknowledge that this style will not be everyone’s cup of tea, if you prefer writing that is more so to the point, which does not seek to include repetitive phrasing with the purpose of adding minute details to an otherwise clearly painted picture, you might not enjoy this book. Therefore, please keep in mind that the writing style follows the mental dialogue of a person who has been nully exposed to the ‘real world’, their thoughts are often stunted by simple scenarios that the author takes pains to express.
I found that the writing style employed throughout the book ensured that character voices & points of view were excruciatingly clear. There was no fear of mistaking Gail (the bird) for Owen (the boy); each character was their own person as much as you or I. This is something that is important to remark upon as both the bird & the boy inhabit the same body; they share feelings so closely as to make it practically impossible to hide something from the other. We read many scenes in which Gail knows what Owen is feeling, sentimentally, without ever having to hear him say it. Therefore, the ability to render two such characters into lively, fully individual beings was wonderful & I fully applaud Lund for that.
As someone who has a difficult time suspending my disbelief, I will not lie to you & say that this story flowed without my need to do so. There are parts wherein one might question how or why something would have been done this way; it might be as frustrating as to want to make you abandon the story. However, should you be able to regard the book for what it is, a story about more than a bird in a ribcage, you might forgive the scenes that do not accomplish what you wish them to.
The reason I highlight this, in particular, is because this is the type of book we might see lining the curriculums of schools in the years to come. Some day we might hear a teacher ask someone the importance of white cloaks & large stethoscopes rather than requiring us to focus on identification cards. This story poses us all the same question; what does the bird represent? It’s lovely to read a story about a boy who hosts a bird & they live through social qualms until they are loved & they love in return. However, there are too many scenes in this story for anyone of critical thinking to overlook. One must acknowledge the elephant in the room. This book allows every reader to pose many vast & profound questions about what it is they carry inside themselves. This is one of the many reasons why I adored Owen as a character.
When we are first introduced to Owen it is through the setting of the scene; the boy born during the flood. We read about his mother’s decision to run away from the hospital workers after having been told that her son had a heart condition & he needed to be closely monitored. We are there when Gail appears in his chest & we are there when he roams free for one final day before his mother keeps him cooped up forever. It’s incredibly sad to read about a character like Owen. I could not help but feel incredibly morose while reading about his life because he was truly held back due to the inability of his parents to understand the complexities of the person they brought into this world. Yes, I am lumping his father into this statement even though the man didn’t even know he had a child but, the absence was a contributing factor to the life we read about.
I felt so much empathy toward Owen that I began to feel hate toward his mother. Here walks a person who brought a child into the world only to subjugate them to their own adult delusions. Should we regard the story for what it is at face value, we have a person who locked their child in the house because they didn’t want them to be harmed by a group of people that we didn’t know for certain were roaming the earth in search of someone like Owen. On the other hand, if we take a step back & regard the situation for what it might represent, it is absolutely horrendous. Owen was neglected on such a level as to alter him almost irrevocably. We watch him long for comfort & joy while knowing that at a moment’s notice, his mother might call him to remind him that, that is not what he deserves to feel in this life.
I understand that Owen’s mother wanted to keep her child safe, & I understand that she was afraid of losing the person that she loved. However, I find it very difficult to forgive parents who impose adult problems/issues onto their children. If you have an issue with the way the world functions, that’s on you. Your child should not grow up riddled with anxiety about the thought of the boogeyman looming around every corner. There is the possibility to be cautious without being paranoid.
As we see Owen grow we read about him discovering his body, his pleasures, & desires & all of this encompasses sexual desires too. I personally found the way in which his sexual discovery was written to be as tasteful as it can be. We are, after all, reading about a person discovering what physical pleasures might arise from masturbation & most people who have gone through puberty might attest that learning to understand your body is not a smooth nor artsy process. Lund was able to write about something that is possibly taboo for many people & not so much for others, in a way as to remove us from the act itself & encourage us rather than focus on the mental hoops Owen has had to jump through to arrive at accepting pleasure for himself. Having lived every waking moment up until that point in constant fear & anxiety about bad things that would befall him, it was good to read about him learning to believe that he could feel good within himself.
I think that as the story unfolds every person might find an aspect of the plot to appreciate. The characters are so incredibly well-thought-out & they wander through prose that is delicious in its descriptors. I am already looking forward to the time wherein I am able to read this story again. Though it is nearly impossible to capture the sentiment of the first time reading a book that one loves, Owen felt overwhelmingly familiar to me, parts of myself in an otherwise total stranger. Therefore, I will anticipate the moment when we can meet on these pages again.
Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, & Emme Lund for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Owen has spent the entirety of his conscious life hidden; burrowed away from the world because his mother is convinced that it has nothing but terror to offer her son, the boy known as a Terror due to the very real bird that has grown within the layers of his ribcage. Owen is sensitive to those around him as much as he is to his own emotional turmoil, due to sharing a physical body with an entity all their own; he has manoeuvred through life, a place in which people can be two-in-one while being wholly singular. How swiftly the weighted word anchors itself to our hearts. How delirious the memory of a decadent story can render us to become. How bewilderingly breathtaking it is to read a story about a boy with a bird in his chest who reminds us that the heart can be as full of good memories as the mind.
Lund has exquisitely crafted a story so sickly sweet that I truly & very overwhelmingly adored every aspect of it. I must first begin this review with praise for the author as the prose that was employed throughout this book was wonderful. Reading this book was like walking through life with blue-coloured glasses; everything carried a weight of morose sorrow with a hint of hope that wafted through the vast shades of blue. I was instantly hooked on Lund’s writing style, as I very much enjoy writing that seeks to craft a scene; showing, leading a reader down to a murky lake only to allow them to place themselves in the scene before beginning to exude the series of events that transpire in such a place.
I acknowledge that this style will not be everyone’s cup of tea, if you prefer writing that is more so to the point, which does not seek to include repetitive phrasing with the purpose of adding minute details to an otherwise clearly painted picture, you might not enjoy this book. Therefore, please keep in mind that the writing style follows the mental dialogue of a person who has been nully exposed to the ‘real world’, their thoughts are often stunted by simple scenarios that the author takes pains to express.
I found that the writing style employed throughout the book ensured that character voices & points of view were excruciatingly clear. There was no fear of mistaking Gail (the bird) for Owen (the boy); each character was their own person as much as you or I. This is something that is important to remark upon as both the bird & the boy inhabit the same body; they share feelings so closely as to make it practically impossible to hide something from the other. We read many scenes in which Gail knows what Owen is feeling, sentimentally, without ever having to hear him say it. Therefore, the ability to render two such characters into lively, fully individual beings was wonderful & I fully applaud Lund for that.
As someone who has a difficult time suspending my disbelief, I will not lie to you & say that this story flowed without my need to do so. There are parts wherein one might question how or why something would have been done this way; it might be as frustrating as to want to make you abandon the story. However, should you be able to regard the book for what it is, a story about more than a bird in a ribcage, you might forgive the scenes that do not accomplish what you wish them to.
The reason I highlight this, in particular, is because this is the type of book we might see lining the curriculums of schools in the years to come. Some day we might hear a teacher ask someone the importance of white cloaks & large stethoscopes rather than requiring us to focus on identification cards. This story poses us all the same question; what does the bird represent? It’s lovely to read a story about a boy who hosts a bird & they live through social qualms until they are loved & they love in return. However, there are too many scenes in this story for anyone of critical thinking to overlook. One must acknowledge the elephant in the room. This book allows every reader to pose many vast & profound questions about what it is they carry inside themselves. This is one of the many reasons why I adored Owen as a character.
When we are first introduced to Owen it is through the setting of the scene; the boy born during the flood. We read about his mother’s decision to run away from the hospital workers after having been told that her son had a heart condition & he needed to be closely monitored. We are there when Gail appears in his chest & we are there when he roams free for one final day before his mother keeps him cooped up forever. It’s incredibly sad to read about a character like Owen. I could not help but feel incredibly morose while reading about his life because he was truly held back due to the inability of his parents to understand the complexities of the person they brought into this world. Yes, I am lumping his father into this statement even though the man didn’t even know he had a child but, the absence was a contributing factor to the life we read about.
I felt so much empathy toward Owen that I began to feel hate toward his mother. Here walks a person who brought a child into the world only to subjugate them to their own adult delusions. Should we regard the story for what it is at face value, we have a person who locked their child in the house because they didn’t want them to be harmed by a group of people that we didn’t know for certain were roaming the earth in search of someone like Owen. On the other hand, if we take a step back & regard the situation for what it might represent, it is absolutely horrendous. Owen was neglected on such a level as to alter him almost irrevocably. We watch him long for comfort & joy while knowing that at a moment’s notice, his mother might call him to remind him that, that is not what he deserves to feel in this life.
I understand that Owen’s mother wanted to keep her child safe, & I understand that she was afraid of losing the person that she loved. However, I find it very difficult to forgive parents who impose adult problems/issues onto their children. If you have an issue with the way the world functions, that’s on you. Your child should not grow up riddled with anxiety about the thought of the boogeyman looming around every corner. There is the possibility to be cautious without being paranoid.
As we see Owen grow we read about him discovering his body, his pleasures, & desires & all of this encompasses sexual desires too. I personally found the way in which his sexual discovery was written to be as tasteful as it can be. We are, after all, reading about a person discovering what physical pleasures might arise from masturbation & most people who have gone through puberty might attest that learning to understand your body is not a smooth nor artsy process. Lund was able to write about something that is possibly taboo for many people & not so much for others, in a way as to remove us from the act itself & encourage us rather than focus on the mental hoops Owen has had to jump through to arrive at accepting pleasure for himself. Having lived every waking moment up until that point in constant fear & anxiety about bad things that would befall him, it was good to read about him learning to believe that he could feel good within himself.
I think that as the story unfolds every person might find an aspect of the plot to appreciate. The characters are so incredibly well-thought-out & they wander through prose that is delicious in its descriptors. I am already looking forward to the time wherein I am able to read this story again. Though it is nearly impossible to capture the sentiment of the first time reading a book that one loves, Owen felt overwhelmingly familiar to me, parts of myself in an otherwise total stranger. Therefore, I will anticipate the moment when we can meet on these pages again.
Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, & Emme Lund for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 29, 2021
Thank you to the publisher for sending me an early copy for review. All thoughts & opinions are my own.
A beautiful, coming-of-age novel that explores identity in its many forms through a striking, whimsical metaphor. Owen is a boy with a bird in his chest. Her name is Gail, and she's always been there. However, this magical secret seems to bring a lot more harm than good. Owen is sheltered from the world by his mother and her fear of the Army of Acronyms (doctors, police, and other authority figures) who may find out Owen's secret, take him away from her, and experiment on him. Instead of fully embracing this part of himself, Owen learns to make himself small and as invisible as possible to scrape by. After an incident puts his safety at risk, Owen's mother sends him and Gail away to live with his uncle in Washington, and there Owen meets a cast of characters who help shape him into the person he was always supposed to become.
This story is so powerful and beautifully told. The thing that truly won me over was Owen as a main character. Together, Owen and Gail are a dynamic duo that you grow to care and love so much. I just wanted the best for him the whole time. I think the supporting characters do just enough to contribute to the story without distracting from its heart which is completely Owen.
The writing took me a little bit to get used to, and I'll be the first to admit this sort of weird/magical realism aspect of a real live bird living in his chest took some time to get used to. But once it clicked, I loved it. Gail is funny and sweet and spunky and a great foil to Owen's more tender, introverted nature. Their relationship is the epitome of authenticity because she is both separate from but wholly part of him. That dynamic was so interesting and seeing its evolution through the novel was lovely.
I think fans of Fredrik Backman's books would really love this one. It comes out February 2022 so definitely keep this one on your radar! I am excited for more people to read it and hear their takes on this story.
A beautiful, coming-of-age novel that explores identity in its many forms through a striking, whimsical metaphor. Owen is a boy with a bird in his chest. Her name is Gail, and she's always been there. However, this magical secret seems to bring a lot more harm than good. Owen is sheltered from the world by his mother and her fear of the Army of Acronyms (doctors, police, and other authority figures) who may find out Owen's secret, take him away from her, and experiment on him. Instead of fully embracing this part of himself, Owen learns to make himself small and as invisible as possible to scrape by. After an incident puts his safety at risk, Owen's mother sends him and Gail away to live with his uncle in Washington, and there Owen meets a cast of characters who help shape him into the person he was always supposed to become.
This story is so powerful and beautifully told. The thing that truly won me over was Owen as a main character. Together, Owen and Gail are a dynamic duo that you grow to care and love so much. I just wanted the best for him the whole time. I think the supporting characters do just enough to contribute to the story without distracting from its heart which is completely Owen.
The writing took me a little bit to get used to, and I'll be the first to admit this sort of weird/magical realism aspect of a real live bird living in his chest took some time to get used to. But once it clicked, I loved it. Gail is funny and sweet and spunky and a great foil to Owen's more tender, introverted nature. Their relationship is the epitome of authenticity because she is both separate from but wholly part of him. That dynamic was so interesting and seeing its evolution through the novel was lovely.
I think fans of Fredrik Backman's books would really love this one. It comes out February 2022 so definitely keep this one on your radar! I am excited for more people to read it and hear their takes on this story.
February 9, 2022
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Genre: Contemporary + Magical Realism + LGBTQ
Owen Tanner is a seventeen-year-old boy living with his mother. She isolates him from the outer world due to an extraordinary condition he suffers from. He has a hole in his chest and in that hole resides a bird called Gail! But one day Owen decides to get out of his cage and has to suffer some consequences which leads him to hide with his cousin Tennessee. This escape will open up many doors and opportunities for Owen. It also makes him understand himself and his feelings.
This is a coming-of-age story with magical realism and lots of metaphors. I liked the relationship between Owen and his bird Gail. I feel every reader will interpret that bird into a particular thing. In the story, it is there but its presence is more of a metaphoric value. I feel most readers will be able to like the main character easily. The story focuses on the changes in Owen’s life and how he moved away from isolation to the open world. It is more about facing the world and facing your fears instead of living in their shadows.
I feel the author brilliantly represented the character who is different than others and how people around him reacted to him, how much they liked him or tolerated him. That bird inside his chest represents his sexuality. It makes a lot of sense if you look at it that way. Although the author does not explicitly mention that it represents that but I strongly felt it from all the different factors in the story. For a debut novel, this was a truly nice tale that is well written and with loveable characters. Somehow I can say that its concept is similar to Nicola Yoon’s Everything Everything but with magical realism and LGBTQ elements. I feel many readers will be able to relate to Owen and his story.
Many thanks to the publisher Atria Books and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book.
Genre: Contemporary + Magical Realism + LGBTQ
Owen Tanner is a seventeen-year-old boy living with his mother. She isolates him from the outer world due to an extraordinary condition he suffers from. He has a hole in his chest and in that hole resides a bird called Gail! But one day Owen decides to get out of his cage and has to suffer some consequences which leads him to hide with his cousin Tennessee. This escape will open up many doors and opportunities for Owen. It also makes him understand himself and his feelings.
This is a coming-of-age story with magical realism and lots of metaphors. I liked the relationship between Owen and his bird Gail. I feel every reader will interpret that bird into a particular thing. In the story, it is there but its presence is more of a metaphoric value. I feel most readers will be able to like the main character easily. The story focuses on the changes in Owen’s life and how he moved away from isolation to the open world. It is more about facing the world and facing your fears instead of living in their shadows.
I feel the author brilliantly represented the character who is different than others and how people around him reacted to him, how much they liked him or tolerated him. That bird inside his chest represents his sexuality. It makes a lot of sense if you look at it that way. Although the author does not explicitly mention that it represents that but I strongly felt it from all the different factors in the story. For a debut novel, this was a truly nice tale that is well written and with loveable characters. Somehow I can say that its concept is similar to Nicola Yoon’s Everything Everything but with magical realism and LGBTQ elements. I feel many readers will be able to relate to Owen and his story.
Many thanks to the publisher Atria Books and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book.
March 18, 2022
I loved learning that the author, Emme Lund, spent time at Mills College. —
So did I.
Lots of time!!
So did one of our daughters.
I swear it’s one of the most beautiful College campuses in the entire Bay Area.
But …
but I found the writing of “The Boy With A Bird in his Chest”, dry and flat.
For a book that tells us ‘how special’ Owen is —
how deeply connected with ‘water’ that he was, (born during a flood)..
the novel felt very dehydrated and depersonalize.
The story ‘sounds’ creative - odd. different, but symbolically endearing and poignant…with universal themes…
But….
I found the plot abysmal …
dull … slow … repetitive …
with too many plot holes …
and on top of everything else, I felt alienated from any sincere emotion.
Sorry! 😕
Read other reviews… many readers enjoyed it!!! 😊
Many glowing wonderful ones.
It just really wasn’t my cup of tea.
So did I.
Lots of time!!
So did one of our daughters.
I swear it’s one of the most beautiful College campuses in the entire Bay Area.
But …
but I found the writing of “The Boy With A Bird in his Chest”, dry and flat.
For a book that tells us ‘how special’ Owen is —
how deeply connected with ‘water’ that he was, (born during a flood)..
the novel felt very dehydrated and depersonalize.
The story ‘sounds’ creative - odd. different, but symbolically endearing and poignant…with universal themes…
But….
I found the plot abysmal …
dull … slow … repetitive …
with too many plot holes …
and on top of everything else, I felt alienated from any sincere emotion.
Sorry! 😕
Read other reviews… many readers enjoyed it!!! 😊
Many glowing wonderful ones.
It just really wasn’t my cup of tea.
December 19, 2021
TW: Suicide, baby's death, paranoid parenting, parent abandonment, teenage masturbating, bullying, homophobia, relationship drama, abuse, drug use, alcohol, toxic parent relationship, cheating
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:Though Owen Tanner has never met anyone else who has a chatty bird in their chest, medical forums would call him a Terror. From the moment Gail emerged between Owen’s ribs, his mother knew that she had to hide him away from the world. After a decade spent in hiding, Owen takes a brazen trip outdoors in the middle of a forest fire, and his life is upended forever.Suddenly, Owen is forced to flee the home that had once felt so confining and hide in plain sight with his uncle and cousin in Washington. There, he feels the joy of finding a family among friends; of sharing the bird in his chest and being embraced fully; of falling in love and feeling the devastating heartbreak of rejection before finding a spark of happiness in the most unexpected place; of living his truth regardless of how hard the thieves of joy may try to tear him down. But the threat of the Army of Acronyms is a constant, looming presence, making Owen wonder if he’ll ever find a way out of the cycle of fear.
Release Date: February 15th, 2022
Genre: Queer Fantasy
Pages: 320
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ 2.5
What I Liked:
• The writing is pretty
• The story sounded unique
What I Didn't Like:
• Kind of feels like a rip off of another book
• Slow
• Repetitive
• Too many plot holes
• One dimension characters
• Doctors of acronyms are said 78 times.... 78 times.... Too much dude.
Overall Thoughts: Is it odd that this book reminded me of something that Tim Burton would pick up & make into a movie?
It's such an interesting story. A bird living in a boys chest and the bird can talk too. I love how serious but whimsical this book could be at times.
I was thrown off though when it is revealed that there is a name for kids like Owen and that they are rare. Scientists are looking to test on them because that is pretty much the story for Sweet Tooth . I really hope it turns out differently though. (it didn't)
Some parts that kind of confused me;
1)How did they manage to get into the doctors office without a name or any ID?
2)Why would she leave Owen with his uncle, wouldn't they know they are related and look for him there?
3)Whats the point of going back to her life without Owen? Why not start again somewhere else instead of abandoning him and endangering her brother and niece if the "people" come?
4)Why put Owen in school if you want to keep a low profile? School would be the place he'd definitely be exposed at - changing at gym class or bullies hitting him-. It just seems odd NOW that he needs school. The gym part is explained but one teenage boy changing in a stall, you're going to be picked on. This must be the most passive school ever. Also how did his uncle enroll him into school without any paperwork? He didn't even have a birth certificate or ssn as it's explained in the beginning the mother just took her baby as soon as he was born.
What's with all the writing about a 14-year old boy masturbating? It's so weird and misplaced. Have you ever noticed how much more open books are to write about teenage boys masturbating but books about girls masturbating are almost non-existent? How about we just not write about it? I do not need to read about a young boy touching himself.
By the way 50% mark it feels repetitive and boring. Owens mom has called him again only this time the doctor found her at work (why the hell is she STILL working at the same place if she had to move?). Owen is still worried about being caught it's the same as the beginning.
It seriously feels so repetitive. Everytime Owen is near water or it rains we reminded that he was born during a flood and that is drawn to the water. I don't need reminded, I'm almost 200 pages into the book. "The boy born during the flood".... 9 times it is repeated. I get it 🙄
Everyone in this book is queer and it seems like anyone who isn't is considered bad or evil. Such an odd take on it. Tennessee's dad is straight but he's bad because he cheated on her mom and is now with the woman he cheated with. Clyde's dad is a homopobic jerk that beats his son. All the queer characters are great and understanding that makes them wonderful people.
How Clyde finds Owen's mothers house is stupid. She left the address on the fridge makes zero sense if she's being followed by the doctors. She's so paranoid but she leaves behind all these ways to find her (leaving behind addresses, working in the same diner where the doctor who finds her can just follow her home, and still paying rent on the house she doesn't live in.)
Final Thoughts: So many plot holes. I was really enjoying this book up to the 30% mark, but it just felt so slow and repetitive. I feel like this story already existed. I feel blindsided because I thought this was a different story than the one I got. Thought this was a story about a boy struggling with a bird in his chest. This turned into a social message about being queer and fitting in. It all became too real and not fun anymore.
IG | Blog
Thanks to Netgalley and Atria for this advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:Though Owen Tanner has never met anyone else who has a chatty bird in their chest, medical forums would call him a Terror. From the moment Gail emerged between Owen’s ribs, his mother knew that she had to hide him away from the world. After a decade spent in hiding, Owen takes a brazen trip outdoors in the middle of a forest fire, and his life is upended forever.Suddenly, Owen is forced to flee the home that had once felt so confining and hide in plain sight with his uncle and cousin in Washington. There, he feels the joy of finding a family among friends; of sharing the bird in his chest and being embraced fully; of falling in love and feeling the devastating heartbreak of rejection before finding a spark of happiness in the most unexpected place; of living his truth regardless of how hard the thieves of joy may try to tear him down. But the threat of the Army of Acronyms is a constant, looming presence, making Owen wonder if he’ll ever find a way out of the cycle of fear.
Release Date: February 15th, 2022
Genre: Queer Fantasy
Pages: 320
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ 2.5
What I Liked:
• The writing is pretty
• The story sounded unique
What I Didn't Like:
• Kind of feels like a rip off of another book
• Slow
• Repetitive
• Too many plot holes
• One dimension characters
• Doctors of acronyms are said 78 times.... 78 times.... Too much dude.
Overall Thoughts: Is it odd that this book reminded me of something that Tim Burton would pick up & make into a movie?
It's such an interesting story. A bird living in a boys chest and the bird can talk too. I love how serious but whimsical this book could be at times.
I was thrown off though when it is revealed that there is a name for kids like Owen and that they are rare. Scientists are looking to test on them because that is pretty much the story for Sweet Tooth . I really hope it turns out differently though. (it didn't)
Some parts that kind of confused me;
1)How did they manage to get into the doctors office without a name or any ID?
2)Why would she leave Owen with his uncle, wouldn't they know they are related and look for him there?
3)Whats the point of going back to her life without Owen? Why not start again somewhere else instead of abandoning him and endangering her brother and niece if the "people" come?
4)Why put Owen in school if you want to keep a low profile? School would be the place he'd definitely be exposed at - changing at gym class or bullies hitting him-. It just seems odd NOW that he needs school. The gym part is explained but one teenage boy changing in a stall, you're going to be picked on. This must be the most passive school ever. Also how did his uncle enroll him into school without any paperwork? He didn't even have a birth certificate or ssn as it's explained in the beginning the mother just took her baby as soon as he was born.
What's with all the writing about a 14-year old boy masturbating? It's so weird and misplaced. Have you ever noticed how much more open books are to write about teenage boys masturbating but books about girls masturbating are almost non-existent? How about we just not write about it? I do not need to read about a young boy touching himself.
By the way 50% mark it feels repetitive and boring. Owens mom has called him again only this time the doctor found her at work (why the hell is she STILL working at the same place if she had to move?). Owen is still worried about being caught it's the same as the beginning.
It seriously feels so repetitive. Everytime Owen is near water or it rains we reminded that he was born during a flood and that is drawn to the water. I don't need reminded, I'm almost 200 pages into the book. "The boy born during the flood".... 9 times it is repeated. I get it 🙄
Everyone in this book is queer and it seems like anyone who isn't is considered bad or evil. Such an odd take on it. Tennessee's dad is straight but he's bad because he cheated on her mom and is now with the woman he cheated with. Clyde's dad is a homopobic jerk that beats his son. All the queer characters are great and understanding that makes them wonderful people.
How Clyde finds Owen's mothers house is stupid. She left the address on the fridge makes zero sense if she's being followed by the doctors. She's so paranoid but she leaves behind all these ways to find her (leaving behind addresses, working in the same diner where the doctor who finds her can just follow her home, and still paying rent on the house she doesn't live in.)
Final Thoughts: So many plot holes. I was really enjoying this book up to the 30% mark, but it just felt so slow and repetitive. I feel like this story already existed. I feel blindsided because I thought this was a different story than the one I got. Thought this was a story about a boy struggling with a bird in his chest. This turned into a social message about being queer and fitting in. It all became too real and not fun anymore.
IG | Blog
Thanks to Netgalley and Atria for this advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
July 9, 2022
As debut novels go, I found it a bit disappointing. It's paced well but repetitious using predictable situations and characters
Owen is born with a hole in his chest where a tiny sparrow named Gail resides. It's my sense the author uses the bird as a conscience metaphor since Owen relies on her for advice. When he becomes ill the doctors discover the strange anomaly and demand his mother allows them to use him as a Guinea pig. Frightened how it could ruin his life, she hides and eventually sends Owen to live with her brother Bob and his daughter, Tennessee. Relying on Gail's insights, he keeps secret the hole and bird as his mother jumps from one location to another aware of imminent danger.
Living with his uncle and cousin miles from Montana, Owen meets Tennessee's group of free spirited sexually uninhibited friends. From here it's a coming-of-age exploration of gay teen life and how Owen comes to grips with being different. Mildly engaging, I felt the concept of a hole with a bird might yield something more profound.
Gauged for the YA market Lund's effort pales in comparison to John Greene, Matthew Quick and others. If this sort of story interests you, then add it to your list.
Owen is born with a hole in his chest where a tiny sparrow named Gail resides. It's my sense the author uses the bird as a conscience metaphor since Owen relies on her for advice. When he becomes ill the doctors discover the strange anomaly and demand his mother allows them to use him as a Guinea pig. Frightened how it could ruin his life, she hides and eventually sends Owen to live with her brother Bob and his daughter, Tennessee. Relying on Gail's insights, he keeps secret the hole and bird as his mother jumps from one location to another aware of imminent danger.
Living with his uncle and cousin miles from Montana, Owen meets Tennessee's group of free spirited sexually uninhibited friends. From here it's a coming-of-age exploration of gay teen life and how Owen comes to grips with being different. Mildly engaging, I felt the concept of a hole with a bird might yield something more profound.
Gauged for the YA market Lund's effort pales in comparison to John Greene, Matthew Quick and others. If this sort of story interests you, then add it to your list.
June 10, 2023
a really great novel about found family, queer identity, and the otherness we face for being perceived as different.
October 21, 2021
2.5 stars
I absolutely loved the concept of this book and the story. But I thought the execution of the story could have been better. I didn't feel a lot of emotion through the writing, more through what was happening. I felt the writing itself was a little monotone and was just recording the events of what happened. I think I would have liked this book more if the writing was a little more creative.
I think my assumptions coming into the book also dampened my enthusiasm about it after reading it. From the title and the summary I expected to read a more fantastical magical book about a boy with a bird in his chest. That wasn't what I got. Instead I got a coming of age story and a heartfelt message to all the queer kids in the world. When you look at the book from that perspective, it accomplishes this well. But the blending of reality with fiction was a little forced and didn't mesh well.
I absolutely loved the concept of this book and the story. But I thought the execution of the story could have been better. I didn't feel a lot of emotion through the writing, more through what was happening. I felt the writing itself was a little monotone and was just recording the events of what happened. I think I would have liked this book more if the writing was a little more creative.
I think my assumptions coming into the book also dampened my enthusiasm about it after reading it. From the title and the summary I expected to read a more fantastical magical book about a boy with a bird in his chest. That wasn't what I got. Instead I got a coming of age story and a heartfelt message to all the queer kids in the world. When you look at the book from that perspective, it accomplishes this well. But the blending of reality with fiction was a little forced and didn't mesh well.
February 6, 2022
I really wanted to love this book about a boy born with a literal bird inside of him. It’s an allegory for what it’s like to be queer/trans and it’s told as a coming of age story. There was so much potential here but I wished it played with more magical realism. I found the writing uncreative and quite boring. Unfortunately I didn’t connect with the writing or characters.
August 14, 2022
3.5 Stars
Review:
*I received an advanced ecopy of this book via NetGalley. This has not influenced my review.*
I enjoyed this slow-paced, character-focused, queer coming-of-age story. There isn’t a goal-oriented plot, it’s more just about Owen’s life through his childhood and teen years, experiencing things, trying to keep his secret safe, and trying to find his place in the world as someone who is different. There’s a romance in the end, but not a lot of romance throughout. Owen deals with some harsh and realistic struggles, like homophobia and a mother who is pretty neglectful, but the story ends on an imperfect but hopeful note.
This is very much a book about being different and feeling unlovable but wanting love. About feeling like you have to hide your differences, whether because your safety would actually be at risk or because you’re worried what people might think. The bird in Owen’s chest could really symbolize any sort of difference that isn’t bad in and of itself but is made difficult because of other people’s judgment and prejudice. Though probably especially queerness because…
There are a lot of queer characters in this book, including Owen. No specific labels, but some mlm and wlw attraction and relationships, and kind of general queerness and just not super conforming to cishet norms.
The bird in chest element was an important part of the story in that it impacted everything from the plot to Owen’s view of the world and himself, but it was still kind of small and quiet. Presented in a kind of matter-of-fact way. Just part of Owen’s life.
The writing had this sort of floaty feel. Almost kind of hazy. A style that worked well for a book about a character who was sheltered and then thrust into a socially/emotionally-disorienting situation. (Owen had no schooling until high school and spent his life before that confined to his house with just his mom and bird.)
I have mixed feelings about the characters and relationships. Except for Owen (and maybe even a little bit Owen), they felt kinda flat. It could make sense from Owen’s POV, maybe he just didn’t know them super well, but I would’ve liked to know the character he was supposedly in love with a bit better. (I at least knew the love interest enough to know he was gentle and sweet.) The more I think about it, the more it feels like this was a solitary, in-his-own-head kind of story. I can remember time Owen spent with people that was kinda summarized, and other time that was more drawn-out and detailed but Owen was mostly in his thoughts and feelings. That could’ve been a purposeful choice by the author though, or I could be forgetting, so it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Owen didn’t seem to have a lot of strong bonds, and even some of the bonds he felt strongest were stretched and frayed.
There’s a lot you have to overlook though, a lot of suspension of disbelief, and it’s not just the whole “open chest, exposed organs that somehow never get infected, bird that talks but never eats” thing. It was also some nonsensical character decisions (like everything Owen’s mother did, though I guess sometimes people in real life do do nonsensical things) and unusual things being unquestioned by characters or not explained to the reader (like how Owen got enrolled in high school with no previous education, or how he got inhalers for his asthma if he never went to doctors).
Note: There’s teenage drinking and drug use, as well as some semi-explicit sex scenes (kind of like a summary more than super detailed).
And a few notes to clear up any genre confusion: I’ve seen the author say the book is not sci-fi/fantasy. However, people in real life don’t have giant holes in their chests with talking birds in them, so I still consider it a subgenre of fantasy. Possibly magical realism, since it takes place in a world where a lot of people have animals inside their bodies, and though they’re not exactly accepted, it’s a known thing. Also, the book is listed as “transgender fiction” on Amazon, but, though the author is trans and the bird in Owen’s chest may be a metaphor, there were no explicitly trans characters. Last but not least, although the book is about a teen, it’s not YA.
Overall, a somewhat bittersweet but hopeful novel about a sheltered boy with a bird in his chest coming of age, exploring his queerness, being different, and finding his place in the world.
*Rating: 3.5 Stars // Read Date: 2022 // Format: Ebook via TTS*
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes magical realism or literary fiction with a touch of the strange or fantastical, queer coming-of-age stories, characters struggling with being different, and hopeful endings.
Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
Review:
*I received an advanced ecopy of this book via NetGalley. This has not influenced my review.*
I enjoyed this slow-paced, character-focused, queer coming-of-age story. There isn’t a goal-oriented plot, it’s more just about Owen’s life through his childhood and teen years, experiencing things, trying to keep his secret safe, and trying to find his place in the world as someone who is different. There’s a romance in the end, but not a lot of romance throughout. Owen deals with some harsh and realistic struggles, like homophobia and a mother who is pretty neglectful, but the story ends on an imperfect but hopeful note.
This is very much a book about being different and feeling unlovable but wanting love. About feeling like you have to hide your differences, whether because your safety would actually be at risk or because you’re worried what people might think. The bird in Owen’s chest could really symbolize any sort of difference that isn’t bad in and of itself but is made difficult because of other people’s judgment and prejudice. Though probably especially queerness because…
There are a lot of queer characters in this book, including Owen. No specific labels, but some mlm and wlw attraction and relationships, and kind of general queerness and just not super conforming to cishet norms.
The bird in chest element was an important part of the story in that it impacted everything from the plot to Owen’s view of the world and himself, but it was still kind of small and quiet. Presented in a kind of matter-of-fact way. Just part of Owen’s life.
The writing had this sort of floaty feel. Almost kind of hazy. A style that worked well for a book about a character who was sheltered and then thrust into a socially/emotionally-disorienting situation. (Owen had no schooling until high school and spent his life before that confined to his house with just his mom and bird.)
I have mixed feelings about the characters and relationships. Except for Owen (and maybe even a little bit Owen), they felt kinda flat. It could make sense from Owen’s POV, maybe he just didn’t know them super well, but I would’ve liked to know the character he was supposedly in love with a bit better. (I at least knew the love interest enough to know he was gentle and sweet.) The more I think about it, the more it feels like this was a solitary, in-his-own-head kind of story. I can remember time Owen spent with people that was kinda summarized, and other time that was more drawn-out and detailed but Owen was mostly in his thoughts and feelings. That could’ve been a purposeful choice by the author though, or I could be forgetting, so it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Owen didn’t seem to have a lot of strong bonds, and even some of the bonds he felt strongest were stretched and frayed.
There’s a lot you have to overlook though, a lot of suspension of disbelief, and it’s not just the whole “open chest, exposed organs that somehow never get infected, bird that talks but never eats” thing. It was also some nonsensical character decisions (like everything Owen’s mother did, though I guess sometimes people in real life do do nonsensical things) and unusual things being unquestioned by characters or not explained to the reader (like how Owen got enrolled in high school with no previous education, or how he got inhalers for his asthma if he never went to doctors).
Note: There’s teenage drinking and drug use, as well as some semi-explicit sex scenes (kind of like a summary more than super detailed).
And a few notes to clear up any genre confusion: I’ve seen the author say the book is not sci-fi/fantasy. However, people in real life don’t have giant holes in their chests with talking birds in them, so I still consider it a subgenre of fantasy. Possibly magical realism, since it takes place in a world where a lot of people have animals inside their bodies, and though they’re not exactly accepted, it’s a known thing. Also, the book is listed as “transgender fiction” on Amazon, but, though the author is trans and the bird in Owen’s chest may be a metaphor, there were no explicitly trans characters. Last but not least, although the book is about a teen, it’s not YA.
Overall, a somewhat bittersweet but hopeful novel about a sheltered boy with a bird in his chest coming of age, exploring his queerness, being different, and finding his place in the world.
*Rating: 3.5 Stars // Read Date: 2022 // Format: Ebook via TTS*
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes magical realism or literary fiction with a touch of the strange or fantastical, queer coming-of-age stories, characters struggling with being different, and hopeful endings.
Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
Read
February 23, 2022Owen Tanner...the boy with the bird in his chest...the boy born during the flood...you have captured something in me and I will never forget you.
"I thought I was good at staying disappeared, but those boys still saw something in me that me stick out. I can't place a finger on it. What can't people leave me alone?"
Owen Tanner was born with a bird in his chest. Literally. Her name is Gail and she is sassy and wise ( I may have laughed out loud at her language). Owen's mother hides him away from the world, sure that he will be experimented on and tormented if anyone were to find out what makes him different. But, a chance outing turns their world upside down, and Owen gets to experience a world outside his own; a world filled with love and heartbreak, of life changing moments and the chance to come into his own.
This book is like nothing I've read before. It's about love, accepting people's differences, who makes a family, living your truth, and loving yourself wholly and completely. This book will make you cringe and laugh and cry and think. I think this book will hold an important place in the canon of book history, as there is, quite literally, nothing like it out right now. It's a powerful story that many people will see themselves in - and that is what is most important to me. While I did struggle in some sections, overall I thought it was magical and thought provoking debut novel. I can't wait to see what is next from this stunning author.
"I thought I was good at staying disappeared, but those boys still saw something in me that me stick out. I can't place a finger on it. What can't people leave me alone?"
Owen Tanner was born with a bird in his chest. Literally. Her name is Gail and she is sassy and wise ( I may have laughed out loud at her language). Owen's mother hides him away from the world, sure that he will be experimented on and tormented if anyone were to find out what makes him different. But, a chance outing turns their world upside down, and Owen gets to experience a world outside his own; a world filled with love and heartbreak, of life changing moments and the chance to come into his own.
This book is like nothing I've read before. It's about love, accepting people's differences, who makes a family, living your truth, and loving yourself wholly and completely. This book will make you cringe and laugh and cry and think. I think this book will hold an important place in the canon of book history, as there is, quite literally, nothing like it out right now. It's a powerful story that many people will see themselves in - and that is what is most important to me. While I did struggle in some sections, overall I thought it was magical and thought provoking debut novel. I can't wait to see what is next from this stunning author.
May 28, 2024
Literally just hugged this after I finished it 🥺🥺🥺
February 10, 2022
"I have a bird who lives in my chest," he said. "Her name is Gail. She's always been there."
"The Boy with a Bird in His Chest" is a beautifully written coming-of-age story about a boy with a secret. Owen is what the medical community calls a "Terror," because in the fictional world that Emme Lund creates, as in the real world, anything or anyone who is different is to be feared. Anyone who has ever known how difficult life can be for those who are different will identify with Owen.
Owen spends most of his young life hiding his secret but when is secret is discovered and he must go into hiding with his uncle and cousin, Owen discovers that there is more to life than hiding who he is, and that one doesn't truly begin to live until you embrace your differences. Often times if you embrace your differences, others around you will too.
This is a beautiful book about love and acceptance. It's about having the courage to let your real self shine through. I love the real-world issues the characters face in their fictional world; issues such as race, sexuality, bullying, and gender. This lovely novel is one of the most intimate and honest books I have read in quite some time. Its raw emotion will have the reader laughing and crying right along with the characters. "The Boy with a Bird in His Chest" is truly a book not to be missed, and it will stay with the reader long after the last page is read and the cover closed.
Many thanks to NetGalley,. the publisher, and the author for the amazing privilege of reading an advanced digital copy of this gorgeous book, in exchange for my honest review.
"The Boy with a Bird in His Chest" is a beautifully written coming-of-age story about a boy with a secret. Owen is what the medical community calls a "Terror," because in the fictional world that Emme Lund creates, as in the real world, anything or anyone who is different is to be feared. Anyone who has ever known how difficult life can be for those who are different will identify with Owen.
Owen spends most of his young life hiding his secret but when is secret is discovered and he must go into hiding with his uncle and cousin, Owen discovers that there is more to life than hiding who he is, and that one doesn't truly begin to live until you embrace your differences. Often times if you embrace your differences, others around you will too.
This is a beautiful book about love and acceptance. It's about having the courage to let your real self shine through. I love the real-world issues the characters face in their fictional world; issues such as race, sexuality, bullying, and gender. This lovely novel is one of the most intimate and honest books I have read in quite some time. Its raw emotion will have the reader laughing and crying right along with the characters. "The Boy with a Bird in His Chest" is truly a book not to be missed, and it will stay with the reader long after the last page is read and the cover closed.
Many thanks to NetGalley,. the publisher, and the author for the amazing privilege of reading an advanced digital copy of this gorgeous book, in exchange for my honest review.
February 28, 2022
Emme Lund's debut novel, The Boy with a Bird in His Chest, is a deeply ambivalent, sometimes-allegorical queer coming-of-age story. Owen Tanner has a hole in his chest: his organs (including his heart) have dutifully moved aside and around the hole to allow space for Gail, the talking java sparrow who lives inside his ribcage.
When Owen is born, there isn't a bird in his chest, but the hole there and the fact that he is alive in spite of it make him a prime target for study. Owen's mother, Janice, sees the doctors eager to study her son as greedy and inhumane, and takes her son home, where she hopes he will pass away in peace.
Instead, he continues to live, and several days later a baby bird appears in his chest. She's been there ever since. Janice is paranoid that her son will be stolen away from her to be experimented on, so she hides him away, and he spends his entire childhood and teenage years isolated from human contact. The story proper begins in Owen's teenage years, shortly before he is spirited away from his home and placed in hiding with his uncle and cousin. In the opening of the book, a flash-forward, Owen is on the road, hitchhiking towards the Golden Gate bridge, where he plans to end his own life.
The book's heart is (ironically) in the right place. There are some genuinely warm moments as Owen finds connections with new friends and family, and powerful ones when Owen feels visible: my favorite line in the book was Owen's triumphant "My name is Owen. I have a bird who lives inside my chest. She's always been there." Gail the sparrow, funny and caring - sometimes even maternal - gives the story life, and the story's magical elements are the most interesting parts. I don't doubt that this could be a meaningful journey for a young queer person, or for someone open-minded but naïve to the difficulty young queer people encounter in everyday life.
The writing, though, leaves a lot to be desired: it is repetitive and somewhat awkward, especially in dialogue, where a lack of contractions makes characters seem stiff and oddly formal (always "I am," never "I'm," etc.). In my experience, people simply don't talk this way. Certain stock phrases reappear too frequently. It seems questionable to me to bill the novel as literary fiction.
There's a lot to be said for the confusion between allegory and reality, too, because the book confronts Owen's navigation of queer young-adulthood simultaneously with his struggle to survive as a medical marvel, a person many would consider to be a monstrosity.
All of the action - the most compelling parts - takes place in the outer segments, probably the first and last fifths of the book. These are the sections that detail Owen's flight from Morning, Montana to his uncle's home in Washington, and later his attempt to escape Washington to go to California, where he plans to end his own life. These parts focus on the real danger Owen is in, of being captured by doctors or government officials - the people his mother refers to as the "Army of Acronyms" due to the abbreviated names of various medical degrees and government organizations. Then, in the bulk of the book, the focus is on Owen's queerness and his desire to find his identity; the threat of death and experimentation fade into the background, and the story's conflicts are suddenly literal instead of allegorical: bullying, young love, the desire to fit in, a backwards, small-town community that isn't accepting of LGBTQ folks. The result is a structure that feels split between Owen's typical teenage woes and actual threats to his life, and a middle section that feels incongruent and far too long.
Are the Army of Acronyms supposed to be taken at face-value - the doctors, government officials, and other cynical and menacing adults out to steal Owen away to experiment on him? It's unclear, because Lund also flirts with the idea of treating them metaphorically, a representation of all of the people who refuse to accept Owen (or queer people in general) for who they are. This makes the resolution to this arm of the plot even more bizarre: after the relentless anxiety Owen faces for the entirety of the book, the entire problem is waved away through a deus-ex-machina type solution that leaves the reader to wonder if the entire thing couldn't have been solved years and years ago. Owen can't figure out if Janice's incessant paranoia is justified, and Lund doesn't seem to know, either.
Owen's recurring obsession with the ocean seems to be another way to indicate his lack of belonging with the rest of the world. He has a dream of living in the undersea world of The Little Mermaid, essentially a tale about longing to be a part of a world inherently hostile to you and incompatible with your physical body. At times, the water and Owen's longing for it seem to be a kind of symbolic buzzword for his otherness. This makes it all the more confusing that The Little Mermaid's ocean doubles as Owen's planned method of suicide, leaving me confused as to what Lund is trying to say. When Owen turns away from his death at the Golden Gate Bridge, what, exactly, is he turning away from?
The thing I found most interesting in the story was Lund's very creative "terrors," the magical-realist construction of people who have animals living inside them. The idea is mostly used to suggest the idea of queerness - having to hide a real part of yourself from the rest of the world, etc. - but Lund also dips into talking about it more literally in the world she has created: these people are known to exist, spoken about online and in textbooks. Towards the end, another specific example is given: Owen reads about a boy with a cricket in his thigh. The interactions between Owen and Gail are so interesting, and feel magical and fantastic in the best ways. I would have loved to meet more characters like this - what would the cricket be like? How do others get along with the animals inside them? Since the boy and bird depend on each other mutually - if one dies, so does the other - there is plenty of room to discuss the implications of conflict between the creatures. I would have loved to read an underground magic story about these terrors, something in the vein of Gaiman's Neverwhere.
Owen meets two others like him, but never has any interaction with them. Both times Owen is in physical proximity to another "terror" are exciting and make us wonder what kinds of lives these people lead - but Lund doesn't follow through. I am certainly willing to believe this could be leveraged for some meaningful observation - the solidarity with the others that Owen feels, even though he never speaks to them - but I was instead left wondering, as I was many times, what exactly Lund was trying to achieve.
Owen's conflict with his mother Janice is particularly frustrating; he grows wary of her incessant paranoia and "crazy talk," but doesn't seem willing or able to think about his resentment for his mother until the very end of the book, where he confronts her. He tells her he's angry, and tells her plainly how he feels about the things she did; she apologizes tearfully and says she's not perfect. That's the end of that part of the conversation; then they talk about Owen's love life and laugh at a silly joke. Owen leaves to go do other stuff and doesn't really think about it anymore. The entire affair is another instance of Lund's apparent lack of conviction; for almost the entire book, Janice is built up as an unwittingly abusive mother, suffering from grievous mental illness and likely alcoholism, but in the end she is portrayed in an almost exclusively sympathetic light. I got the sense that it was Lund, not Owen, who was forgiving Janice for her treatment of her son.
The Boy with a Bird in His Chest tries to create a fantastical, magical-realist landscape in which to explore questions of identity and belonging. Unfortunately, it lacks commitment to its own ideas, and its mixture allegory and reality creates a confusion at odds with the message of confidence in oneself and one's identity.
When Owen is born, there isn't a bird in his chest, but the hole there and the fact that he is alive in spite of it make him a prime target for study. Owen's mother, Janice, sees the doctors eager to study her son as greedy and inhumane, and takes her son home, where she hopes he will pass away in peace.
Instead, he continues to live, and several days later a baby bird appears in his chest. She's been there ever since. Janice is paranoid that her son will be stolen away from her to be experimented on, so she hides him away, and he spends his entire childhood and teenage years isolated from human contact. The story proper begins in Owen's teenage years, shortly before he is spirited away from his home and placed in hiding with his uncle and cousin. In the opening of the book, a flash-forward, Owen is on the road, hitchhiking towards the Golden Gate bridge, where he plans to end his own life.
The book's heart is (ironically) in the right place. There are some genuinely warm moments as Owen finds connections with new friends and family, and powerful ones when Owen feels visible: my favorite line in the book was Owen's triumphant "My name is Owen. I have a bird who lives inside my chest. She's always been there." Gail the sparrow, funny and caring - sometimes even maternal - gives the story life, and the story's magical elements are the most interesting parts. I don't doubt that this could be a meaningful journey for a young queer person, or for someone open-minded but naïve to the difficulty young queer people encounter in everyday life.
The writing, though, leaves a lot to be desired: it is repetitive and somewhat awkward, especially in dialogue, where a lack of contractions makes characters seem stiff and oddly formal (always "I am," never "I'm," etc.). In my experience, people simply don't talk this way. Certain stock phrases reappear too frequently. It seems questionable to me to bill the novel as literary fiction.
There's a lot to be said for the confusion between allegory and reality, too, because the book confronts Owen's navigation of queer young-adulthood simultaneously with his struggle to survive as a medical marvel, a person many would consider to be a monstrosity.
All of the action - the most compelling parts - takes place in the outer segments, probably the first and last fifths of the book. These are the sections that detail Owen's flight from Morning, Montana to his uncle's home in Washington, and later his attempt to escape Washington to go to California, where he plans to end his own life. These parts focus on the real danger Owen is in, of being captured by doctors or government officials - the people his mother refers to as the "Army of Acronyms" due to the abbreviated names of various medical degrees and government organizations. Then, in the bulk of the book, the focus is on Owen's queerness and his desire to find his identity; the threat of death and experimentation fade into the background, and the story's conflicts are suddenly literal instead of allegorical: bullying, young love, the desire to fit in, a backwards, small-town community that isn't accepting of LGBTQ folks. The result is a structure that feels split between Owen's typical teenage woes and actual threats to his life, and a middle section that feels incongruent and far too long.
Are the Army of Acronyms supposed to be taken at face-value - the doctors, government officials, and other cynical and menacing adults out to steal Owen away to experiment on him? It's unclear, because Lund also flirts with the idea of treating them metaphorically, a representation of all of the people who refuse to accept Owen (or queer people in general) for who they are. This makes the resolution to this arm of the plot even more bizarre: after the relentless anxiety Owen faces for the entirety of the book, the entire problem is waved away through a deus-ex-machina type solution that leaves the reader to wonder if the entire thing couldn't have been solved years and years ago. Owen can't figure out if Janice's incessant paranoia is justified, and Lund doesn't seem to know, either.
Owen's recurring obsession with the ocean seems to be another way to indicate his lack of belonging with the rest of the world. He has a dream of living in the undersea world of The Little Mermaid, essentially a tale about longing to be a part of a world inherently hostile to you and incompatible with your physical body. At times, the water and Owen's longing for it seem to be a kind of symbolic buzzword for his otherness. This makes it all the more confusing that The Little Mermaid's ocean doubles as Owen's planned method of suicide, leaving me confused as to what Lund is trying to say. When Owen turns away from his death at the Golden Gate Bridge, what, exactly, is he turning away from?
The thing I found most interesting in the story was Lund's very creative "terrors," the magical-realist construction of people who have animals living inside them. The idea is mostly used to suggest the idea of queerness - having to hide a real part of yourself from the rest of the world, etc. - but Lund also dips into talking about it more literally in the world she has created: these people are known to exist, spoken about online and in textbooks. Towards the end, another specific example is given: Owen reads about a boy with a cricket in his thigh. The interactions between Owen and Gail are so interesting, and feel magical and fantastic in the best ways. I would have loved to meet more characters like this - what would the cricket be like? How do others get along with the animals inside them? Since the boy and bird depend on each other mutually - if one dies, so does the other - there is plenty of room to discuss the implications of conflict between the creatures. I would have loved to read an underground magic story about these terrors, something in the vein of Gaiman's Neverwhere.
Owen meets two others like him, but never has any interaction with them. Both times Owen is in physical proximity to another "terror" are exciting and make us wonder what kinds of lives these people lead - but Lund doesn't follow through. I am certainly willing to believe this could be leveraged for some meaningful observation - the solidarity with the others that Owen feels, even though he never speaks to them - but I was instead left wondering, as I was many times, what exactly Lund was trying to achieve.
Owen's conflict with his mother Janice is particularly frustrating; he grows wary of her incessant paranoia and "crazy talk," but doesn't seem willing or able to think about his resentment for his mother until the very end of the book, where he confronts her. He tells her he's angry, and tells her plainly how he feels about the things she did; she apologizes tearfully and says she's not perfect. That's the end of that part of the conversation; then they talk about Owen's love life and laugh at a silly joke. Owen leaves to go do other stuff and doesn't really think about it anymore. The entire affair is another instance of Lund's apparent lack of conviction; for almost the entire book, Janice is built up as an unwittingly abusive mother, suffering from grievous mental illness and likely alcoholism, but in the end she is portrayed in an almost exclusively sympathetic light. I got the sense that it was Lund, not Owen, who was forgiving Janice for her treatment of her son.
The Boy with a Bird in His Chest tries to create a fantastical, magical-realist landscape in which to explore questions of identity and belonging. Unfortunately, it lacks commitment to its own ideas, and its mixture allegory and reality creates a confusion at odds with the message of confidence in oneself and one's identity.
March 24, 2022
Emme Lund's The Boy with a Bird in His Chest can't quite decide how its story fits together.
Owen is born in Montana to a single mom who works all day at a diner to provide for him. His life becomes complicated when, as an infant, a talking bird, Gail, pops up in a hold in his chest - a hole without skin, showing his ribs and organs. Owen's mother is frightened for the well-being of her son and locks him up inside, but as he learns to explore the outside world, his condition puts him at risk - in the eyes of himself and his mother - of being taken by various institutions for study. Owen goes on to fall in love, understand his sexual fluidity, build friendships and family, and give voice to Gail despite the fear he holds towards the outside world.
The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is a seeming attempt at magical realism that blends far too much into fantasy while also trying to use prose to make it feel real. While the story is interesting, Lund bogs it down with too much detail and it makes reading the book a bit of a slog. Owen is a compelling character and the general plot of the story is an interesting one. And yet it is never quite clear why the story is about a boy with a bird in hist chest; it is in the story but never explained and the purpose for it is not obvious. All in all, this makes the book a bit confusing to understand and hard to connect with.
Owen is born in Montana to a single mom who works all day at a diner to provide for him. His life becomes complicated when, as an infant, a talking bird, Gail, pops up in a hold in his chest - a hole without skin, showing his ribs and organs. Owen's mother is frightened for the well-being of her son and locks him up inside, but as he learns to explore the outside world, his condition puts him at risk - in the eyes of himself and his mother - of being taken by various institutions for study. Owen goes on to fall in love, understand his sexual fluidity, build friendships and family, and give voice to Gail despite the fear he holds towards the outside world.
The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is a seeming attempt at magical realism that blends far too much into fantasy while also trying to use prose to make it feel real. While the story is interesting, Lund bogs it down with too much detail and it makes reading the book a bit of a slog. Owen is a compelling character and the general plot of the story is an interesting one. And yet it is never quite clear why the story is about a boy with a bird in hist chest; it is in the story but never explained and the purpose for it is not obvious. All in all, this makes the book a bit confusing to understand and hard to connect with.
April 9, 2022
Oh boy, the bird was not enough to make this story work.
Honestly, jokes aside, there are so many issues within this novel that I’m getting tired of only just thinking of writing them down.
I’m giving two stars only for the overall idea of it all and for what this book could have been. Generally, a reading experience like this would have be a clear one-star rating.
Honestly, jokes aside, there are so many issues within this novel that I’m getting tired of only just thinking of writing them down.
I’m giving two stars only for the overall idea of it all and for what this book could have been. Generally, a reading experience like this would have be a clear one-star rating.
August 6, 2021
The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is an irresistably warmhearted ode to the many kinds of fierce, forgiving loves we may find through happy accident when we both most need and are least able to accept or believe in them. In Emme Lund's tender narrative of queer coming of age, the necessity of keeping life-or-death secrets clashes with the urgency of being seen, understood, and valued despite--and even because of--difference. This is a gentle story, despite the horrors its characters live in fear of and occasionally taste, and its defiant gentleness strengthens the believable nature of its ultimately hopeful conclusions.
I will likely recommend this novel to many people, but I would particularly recommend it to anyone who knows from the inside out what it's like to grow up as a queer, weird, music-loving outcast in a small-town or rural setting.
I received a free e-ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I will likely recommend this novel to many people, but I would particularly recommend it to anyone who knows from the inside out what it's like to grow up as a queer, weird, music-loving outcast in a small-town or rural setting.
I received a free e-ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
March 7, 2022
4.5. first of all, I bawled my eyes out after I finished this book last night. I stayed up late reading it because once I started, I couldn't stop. I love books that utilize allegory in a unique way, and this was a perfect example of that. beautiful, unique, emotional. I may be slightly biased because I relate to it so much, but I really believe it's a genius way of telling a story. the only thing that I didn't care for was the last couple of chapters. I did enjoy the ending, but for some reason the last part of the book felt like it was paced differently than the rest. overall - incredible. thankful I found this book at this current point in my life.
December 3, 2023
Woah. So original. Sweet, creative, funny, with a last 100 pages that was surprisingly page turning. Whole cast of characters were so well done. A lot of manic pixie queerness, some angst, some psychedelics. I love Gail!!!!!! I also realllllyyyy relate to Tennessee’s anxious braiding. God there was so much in here: gender stuff, toxic masculinity stuff, teenage heartache, families, anxiety, depression! The whole allegory was so well crafted, made me think about the bird in my chest 🐦⬛ 🫁🌲 ❤️🐎🏳️🌈
April 1, 2024
So many happy thoughts to this!! I loved Owen and I loved following him throughout this journey. This book is sentimental and thoughtful and sad and encouraging and promising. Big theme of hope and growth throughout the story and lots of thought provoking symbolism and depth.
It was definitely a feeler and there were clearly parts intended to hit deeper and deeper, but I just never got there with those parts.
Overall biiiig recommendation because I just love books about humans and their unrealistic connection to animals?? It was also just a really good story!
It was definitely a feeler and there were clearly parts intended to hit deeper and deeper, but I just never got there with those parts.
Overall biiiig recommendation because I just love books about humans and their unrealistic connection to animals?? It was also just a really good story!
April 11, 2023
This is a brilliantly written coming of age story about a boy who has to hide who he truly is from the world. Highly detailed descriptions and engaging prose. I had a chance to meet the author at a recent reading, where she admitted this book took nine years to complete. The patience and time put into this novel shows. 10/10.
August 4, 2022
Whimsical and introspective. Perhaps the plot could have done with some more editing, but the story at the center was heartwarming and compelling.
3.9 stars
3.9 stars
February 15, 2025
Weird and lovely and sweet! I liked it a lot.
July 11, 2022
Been looking for some good, magical realism and thought this could be it. It sounded unique and different, but it's just dry and boring... and weird. It will be no surprise, I'm sure, when this Bird in the Chest turns out to be an overly contrived allegory for being different and bullied because of homosexuality. Regardless, just not seeing the magic so I'm moving on.
September 14, 2022
We need half stars! 3.5
February 21, 2022
Five days after Owen Tanner is born, four days after his mother runs away from the hospital so that he can die comfortably at home instead of while being poked and prodded by doctors, a hole opens up in his chest. And a baby bird appears: Gail. He may spend the rest of his life running from doctors, police, and other members of what his mother has dubbed the Army of Acronyms, but as long as he has Gail he will be okay. Until he wants more.
The people who are part of Owen’s world through this strange coming-of-age are some of the most well-formed characters I have read in a long time. They are not perfect, not always kind, not always logical, but deeply rooted in some sense of humanity, so that we understand when they fail to be their best selves. While Owen is the only person he knows with a bird in his chest, he is far from the only person with a secret. Raised on the lessons that people can’t be trusted, and that the world is a dangerous place to live as your authentic self, Owen learns he can choose to believe those things, or he can abandon them cautiously. He can choose instead to share, to trust, and to love.
The quicker you suspend your disbelief, and surrender to the idea of an animal inhabiting a hollow created in a body, the better you’ll enjoy the magical realism that is both quiet and pervasive throughout the novel. This is not a book without plot holes, but getting to know these characters will mostly make up for them.
The obvious comparison here is Sweet Tooth, but this book is far more introspective and void of gore (though not of violence), and where Sweet Tooth provides history, context, and a populated “other-ed” cast, Lund’s novel zooms in on one person’s experience of growing up with a concealable difference. While this is not categorized as YA, it wouldn’t be a far reach.
Review originally published at https://www.glbtrt.ala.org/reviews/bo...
The people who are part of Owen’s world through this strange coming-of-age are some of the most well-formed characters I have read in a long time. They are not perfect, not always kind, not always logical, but deeply rooted in some sense of humanity, so that we understand when they fail to be their best selves. While Owen is the only person he knows with a bird in his chest, he is far from the only person with a secret. Raised on the lessons that people can’t be trusted, and that the world is a dangerous place to live as your authentic self, Owen learns he can choose to believe those things, or he can abandon them cautiously. He can choose instead to share, to trust, and to love.
The quicker you suspend your disbelief, and surrender to the idea of an animal inhabiting a hollow created in a body, the better you’ll enjoy the magical realism that is both quiet and pervasive throughout the novel. This is not a book without plot holes, but getting to know these characters will mostly make up for them.
The obvious comparison here is Sweet Tooth, but this book is far more introspective and void of gore (though not of violence), and where Sweet Tooth provides history, context, and a populated “other-ed” cast, Lund’s novel zooms in on one person’s experience of growing up with a concealable difference. While this is not categorized as YA, it wouldn’t be a far reach.
Review originally published at https://www.glbtrt.ala.org/reviews/bo...
April 4, 2022
an imaginative plot, fantastically queer characters, engaging bildungsroman, great book.
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