Bird

January 27, 2014
Jewel's five-year-old brother, John, nicknamed Bird, was expecting to fly when he jumped off a cliff to his death the day Jewel was born. Twelve years later, Jewel's family is far from having recovered. Grandpa hasn't spoken since, Jewel's father believes that both Grandpa and "duppies" (harmful Jamaican spirits) are responsible for the tragedy, and Jewel's mother, who is of Mexican descent, is depressed and resentful of the family's superstitions. An outsider in her own joyless home and in her small town of Caledonia, Iowa, Jewel takes her troubles to nature, dreaming of becoming a geologist. When she meets a boy named John with big aspirations and struggles of his own, they become friends. Grandpa, however, thinks John is a duppy, and when John betrays Jewel's trust, she's forced to assess her own beliefs. In a thoughtful debut, Chan weaves together topics of race, repressed emotion, and destructive family dynamics, setting events against the beauty of the Midwestern landscape. Jewel's gentle voice offers moments of insight and wisdom as she becomes empowered to move beyond her parents' losses and desires. Ages 8â12. Agent: Emily van Beek, Folio Literary Management.

November 15, 2013
Jewel Campbell's life began the day her older brother John's tragically ended, a coincidence that's shaped and shadowed her family since. Her Jamaican-immigrant grandfather nicknamed John "Bird," encouraging him to imagine he could fly with disastrous results. He hasn't said a word since and, along with Jewel's dad, blames the catastrophe on evil spirits from Jamaica, duppies. Both have gone to great lengths to repel future supernatural harm (Jewel's white-Mexican mom retains some skepticism). Largely ignored, Jewel is equally in thrall to the family narrative. After the family visits Bird's grave on her 12th birthday, she steals out to climb a tree in a neighbor's field and meets a boy who tells her his name is John. Like Jewel, whose passion is geology, he's a budding scientist with a complex heritage--African-American, adopted by white parents. They exchange secrets. Both feel out of place, moved by forces beyond their control, like the erratic granite boulder Jewel climbs. Jewel's observant reflections on her rural-Iowa world give this debut its considerable charm. As brutal antagonism intensifies among the adults, the focus shifts to characters and events before Jewel's birth, making Jewel less actor than bystander in her own story. For young readers especially, the resolution is uncomfortably vague. Though it loses momentum halfway through, the strong opening bodes well for future endeavors. (Fiction. 10-14)

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January 1, 2014

Gr 4-6-Jewel never met her brother. On the day she was born, he tried to fly off a cliff and died. Her parents believe that Grandpa's nickname for his grandson, Bird, caused a bad spirit, a duppy, to trick the boy into believing he could fly. Twelve years later, Grandpa has still not spoken a word and Jewel is fed up with her moody parents and unloving household. She meets a boy who calls himself John, her brother's real name. They share their hopes and dreams and Jewel opens up about visiting the cliff to bury her worries as small stones. Grandpa thinks John is a duppy in disguise, come to cause more harm. Jewel is a multilayered, emotional character who struggles to come to terms with her family's issues. The mixture of superstition and science creates a wonderful juxtaposition in this powerful story about loss and moving on.-Clare A. Dombrowski, Amesbury Public Library, MA

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2013
Grades 4-7 In my house we wield silence like shields and swords: We use it to push people away or injure them. Ever since 12-year-old Jewel's brother died by jumping off a cliff on the day she was born, her grandfather hasn't uttered a word. He's the one who gave his grandson, John, the nickname Bird and told him that, one day, Bird would fly. Jewel's Jamaican grandpa and her dad believe in duppies, or harmful spirits, and think grandpa's nickname attracted one. Now, Jewel is living in a house of fear, silence, and guilt. Jewel returns to the cliff where her brother died in order to connect with him and feels the place, unlike her family, speaks to her. When she meets a boy in town for the summer, she, a geology lover, and he, obsessed with space exploration, become friends. But this boy has secrets of his own, and, eventually, someone is going to have to talk. This is a slow readthoughtful and introspective about the dynamics of a grieving familyand contemplative readers will be rewarded by Jewel's journey.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)