The Nature of Small Birds

 

Back Cover

In 1975, three thousand children were airlifted out of Saigon to be adopted into Western homes. When one of those children announces her plans to return to Vietnam to find her birth mother, her loving adopted family is suddenly thrown back to the events surrounding her unconventional arrival in their lives.

Mindy's father grapples with the tension between holding on tightly and letting his daughter spread her wings. Her mother undergoes the emotional roller coaster inherent in the adoption of a child from a war-torn country, discovering the joy hidden amid the difficulties. And Mindy and her sister struggle to find the strength to accept each other as they both discover who they truly are.

Told through three distinct voices in three compelling timelines, The Nature of Small birds is a hopeful story that explores the meaning of family far beyond the genetic code.

Review

Absolutely incredible. Susie Finkbeiner has created a literary feast for the senses in this emotional tale. I loved how she told Mindy's story through the eyes of Mindy's adoptive mother (Linda), father (Bruce), and one of her sisters (Sonny), deftly picking three distinct and telling time period for each narrative. The interweaving of voices create a beautiful patchwork of a loving family, all trying in their own ways to ensure Mindy feels loved, wanted, and belonged in an often hurtful world.

The author literally drops the reader right in the middle of the stories, allowing the reader to feel like a fly on the wall to this family's tale. The approach is effective, and through Linda, we learn of the struggles of adopting a child from Vietnam in 1975, where prejudices run rampant in the country, their small town, and even in their own family. Sonny invites the reader into the lives of her and her teenaged sister in 1988 as they navigate high school and first loves. Bruce unpacks 2013 with the revelation Mindy wants to embark on a journey of discovery to find her birth mother. It is a lot to pull together into merely one novel, and I admit, I was so captivated by the story, it was rather sad reading the final chapter - if only there was a sequel! 

The Nature of Small Birds is a thought-provoking story that I heartily recommend.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.