Birdspell

by Valerie Sherrard

Corbin Hayes has felt alone for as long as he can remember. His mom's illness means lost jobs, constant moves, new schools, and friendships that never get to grow. There's a gap in his life that's been waiting to be filled.

So, when a classmate offers Corbin the talking bird she can no longer keep, he's stoked.

But when things begin to spiral out of control, Corbin can no longer get his mom - or himself - through the dark period. At his lowest moment, he's forced to do the one thing he fears the most.

Genres: Young Adult, Canada, Fiction, Friendship

176 pages, Paperback

Published March 13, 2021

About the author

I was born in 1957 in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, and grew up in various parts of Canada. My dad was in the Air Force so the family moved often, and was sent to live in Lahr, West Germany, when I was eleven. It was there that a teacher encouraged me toward writing. I didn't rush into it, though. It wasn't until 2002 that my first book was released, but since then I've had several dozen books for young people published.

One reason I chose to write for children and teens was my experience in working with them. Over the years I fostered about 70 teens in my home, and I also worked as the Director of a group home for teens in my community for more than a decade.

Reviews

[Marsha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was immediately drawn in to this story of Corbin, a grade 8 student who carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. His father is not around and his mother is bipolar. He's never stayed long enough in any home or school to put down roots or to develop friendships. When a classmate has to give away her parakeet, Corbin offers to take it, thinking that having a talking bird is the closest thing he'd ever have to a pet or a friend. Heartbreaking and heartwarming. Sherrard has drawn achingly real people in this novel. Highly recommended!

[Zoom · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one caught my eye because of the parrot on the cover. The parrot does have a role, but he's not a central character. The book is about a young boy (maybe 13?) who lives with his mother. His mother has bipolar disorder, so their lives can be a bit chaotic at times. They move frequently and his mom cycles through periods mania, depression and relative stability. They have financial problems because she can't hold a job for long. As a result he has to be more responsible than your average teen in order to make sure they can weather the storms. He does the cooking, earns a bit of money babysitting, and worries about whether the rent will be paid. It's an interesting story, and I like that it doesn't try to tidy everything up by the end in order to give us a happy ending.

[Chris]

My daughter and I really enjoyed this story of a boy coping with his mother’s bipolar disorder, and the chaos it brings to his life. The ending felt a bit deus ex machina to me, but the situation itself felt very real, and spoke to a common cause of poverty and instability.

[Alexia Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would be a great book for JR high schoolers or high schoolers to learn a little more about mental health and support systems

[faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

wasnt expecting this to be that good

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

An authentic, eye-opening read. Young Corbin cares deeply as he copes with heart-wrenching realities in his search for friendship and stability at home.
Highly recommended.

[Deborah Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

8th grader Corbin lives with his Bi-Polar mother, and they constantly move as she loses job after job. His father sends money, but never sees him and he tries so hard to keep his chaotic home life a secret from everyone. They are living without furniture, and his mother is off her medication again. He actually seems to have made a friend at his new school in spite of his usual attempts to avoid everyone. The new friend has to give him her beloved parakeet, and Sitta brings joy into his life just when he needs it most. He can't tell anyone how sick his mother is, until the night she overdoses. What happens next changes everything. This is a quick read, but evokes a lot of feelings, and I recommend it to middle-grade readers and adults too.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful book that explores the difficulty with living with a person who is bipolar. Corbin's mom is bipolar and has many ups and downs. But Corbin learns that if you let people into your heart, good things happen. Excellent book.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

[Kate]

Birdspell by Valerie Sherrard is a tribute to the hidden struggle that many of our students face every day. This emotional and honest novel provides an opportunity to explore sources of stress, and how we cope with the different situations. It offers readers a way to have difficult conversations through a fictional character that is relatable but safe. Birdspell reminds us that everyone we meet is fighting their own battle, even when we can not see it. 


Each chapters offers a deeper glimpse into the life of sixth grader Corbin Hayes as he struggles to navigate his two vastly different worlds; his public life, and his life with his mother. Corbin sees everyone as “outsiders” and has been taught keep his problems hidden. His vacant father, his sick mother, unforgiving landlords, and even teachers, have all confirmed his beliefs. But when a classmate offers to give Corbin a talking bird, he starts to build relationships that he never imagined. By connecting with others, Corbin learns that even in the darkest moments of his life, there is magic to be found.


The book is an appropriate Novel Study for junior and intermediate grades, with links to the Health and Physical Education curriculum (Social-Emotional Learning Skills and Healthly Living). The book touches on diverse topics that opens the conversation for readers to make connections to their lives, familiar texts, and the wider world around them. Each chapter offers natural pauses for readers to make judgements and draw conclusions about what might happen next, and how he might react in each situation. 


Birdspell provides opportunities to discuss topics of mental health, healthy relationships, and coping skills, through a relatable character. Readers can make connection through Corbin’s thoughts, emotions, and actions, and understand the impact it has on his everyday life. This novel gives readers a safe space to understand the connection between mental health and mental illness, and how to identify possible signs of a mental health issue. 


Ontario teachers would benefit from reading Birdspell on their own, or with their students. Educators will be moved by Corbin’s hidden struggle and his resiliency in the face of so many challenges.Students will be inspired by Corbin’s journey to escape the cage of his emotions and finally feel free to let other’s into his world. Overall, Birdspell by Valerie Sherrard was an impactful read, and would benefit junior and intermediate classrooms across the province. 

[Wunderdrugged · Rating 4 out of 5]

This title is nominated for the 2023 Hackmatack Award in the English fiction category.
Our protagonist is a twelve year old boy named Corbin. Corbin lives with his mother, who struggles with bipolar disorder. His life is a chaotic mess, depending on what is going on with his mother. He doesn't want to let anyone one get too close, because of his mother's volatile behavior. Without any other family or friends, Corbin is isolated and lonely. When he adopts a bird named Sitta, Corbin starts opening up and talking about his thoughts and feeling out loud for probably the first time ever. Eventually a major incident lands his mother in the hospital, leading Corbin to start developing relationships & learning to trust his friends. The author doesn't hold back in her depictions of the manic and depressive episodes, and the unflinchingly honest reactions of Corbin. It is heartbreaking to read about, but I think that it is important to have these types of characters represented in children's literature - both for kids who are living that experience, and kids who have never had to worry about food insecurity or having a place to live.
This book is very well written, and the characters are all interesting in their own rights. I wouldn't say it has a happy ending necessarily, but it concludes on a hopeful note. Recommended for all kids ages ten and up.

[Lorna Nicholson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Valerie Sherrard is such a clean writer and her development of characters is exceptional. I was there for Corbin every step of the way. Everything about his situation rang true. Great novel!

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book written from the perspective of a 12/13 year old boy dealing with the everyday (and constant) challenges of having a parent suffering from a mental illness.

I thought the author did a great job of describing the challenges in a manner not too overwhelming for any young readers who pick this one up. It was certainly enlightening to my young reader who found the story a mix of happy and sad. We certainly had good conversations while reading this one and it opened their eyes to the realities of other people, which is not always obvious.

I appreciated the ending, which was super satisfying, but not in a bubblegum sweet way. It was more about empowerment rather than having someone come in and save the day. Loved it!

[Ren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book hits in a way that I wasn't expecting. It's heavy, raw, and depicts an uncomfortably accurate example of how bipolar disorder can impact families. It isn't perfect, and every case is going to be different along with every family being different, but this is interesting for how well done it is. Corbin definitely slipped though the cracks, and I have no idea how it could happen for that long.

[Amy Perrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Birdspell By Valerie Sherrard
Corbin just started at a new school, when he hears one of the girls talk about having to get rid of their parakeet Sitta because a family member has allergies. So he asks if he could take the bird, he has always wanted a pet. But Izelle has to come and see the house to make sure it will work. Corbin is unsure about this because In his apartment they have NO furniture at all. Corbin and his mother move around a lot so his mother decided that moving the furniture was too much work. His mother has bipolar and he is always taking care of her. Izelle comes over to see his place and he tells her that they are minimalists, Izelle loves the idea of the bird Sitta having so much open space, and let’s Corbin keep the bird, as long as she can visit every week.
Corbin is very excited but his mother comes home and tells him she has quit her job. They barley have enough as it is to buy groceries and his mother puts an eviction notice on the birds cage. Sitta has one month to find a new home!
Corbin tries to get some odd jobs to buy food for Sitta, he has to be careful of the grumpy neighbour and then his mother gets sick. She doesn’t leave her bed and in the middle of the night he can’t wake her and calls for an ambulance….

[DT · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in pretty much one sitting. I read it to see if it would be appropriate for our school library (I work in a K-8 Christian school). I decided it wouldn’t be.

The story moves fast. It’s pretty heavy and dark, but the characterization is poor. You definitely feel for Corbin and everything he goes through, but the other characters are two dimensional, including Rhea.

There are few unsatisfying elements to the plot. I thought Taylor was a teen mom and this would be revealed at the end, but it wasn’t. Her sudden attachment to Corbin isn’t really explained. Was Rhea’s overdose a suicide attempt? This also wasn’t explained.

All the characters seem a little too understanding of Corbin’s struggles, which makes the story unrealistic. In the end, everyone pitches in to help Corbin, but is this how it would be in real life? Also, why does his mom have sole custody of him if her illness is so severe?

I don’t think this book really teaches a valuable lesson, which is my main reason for giving it three stars.

[Kay S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Getting real tired of all these sad books. This book is really well written and the language is suitable for middle grade. That being said, the subject matter is HEAVY. It’s definitely something that needs to come with a warning. It does a really solid job of showing how the home-life can affect the day to day life of a child. While I accept that there’s no way the mother could have gotten out of her crisis on her own, the fact that she could only be saved by three men was a bit stereotypical. Yes, the MC got solid male role models out of it but it doesn’t change the falling into a trope made worse by the father showing up at the end to make everything better.

[Ena Bo Beena · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a reread. I’m very grateful that this book pushed me into reading for my own enjoyment back in grade 7. After years I decided to go back to it.

After fleshing out my taste in books it made it hard to like this like I did in the past. I thought that the begging middle and end was all to similar. And then it was all resulted too fast. If there was more dialogue with the characters at the end would have been SO MUCH more impactful. An epilogue would have been good too.

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok but it wasn't terrible.

[🍀Maggie🍀 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an interesting perspective, I really enjoyed it.

[Michelle M · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not my favourite.
I think certain kids might be able to relate to it but there were a lot of wonders I had about certain things in the book.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Brutal. Absolutely Brutal. I read this book as part of the 2022-23 MYRCA challenge, and was SHOCKED at the dark nature of the story. Judging by the cover and the ages this book is geared towards, I thought it would be a fun book about a pet bird.

Positive: I liked how strong and resilient the character Corbin was

Negative: As an educator, it saddens me to see Corbin live with such neglect and abuse. When I first finished it my thought was that it was unbelievable that he would not be taken out of the home with his mother. After a few weeks of reflection, I think of some of the students I have helped in the past - it unfortunately does seem believable that Corbin would not be taken out of that home.