The Bird Sisters: A Novel [Hardcover]

Rebecca Rasmussen (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"THE BIRD SISTERS is that immensely satisfying combination of indelible characters and a suspenseful and cunningly revealed plot. In lovely evocative prose Rebecca Rasmussen conjures up her two sisters, Milly and Twiss, and their rural Wisconsin community during the summer that changed their lives. Full of wonderful surprises, this is a splendid debut that will stay with the reader long after the last page."
–Margot Livesey

"Rebecca Rasmussen has written her graceful debut, THE BIRD SISTERS, with unflinching and transporting empathy. After a few short chapters of this vivid, lucid novel, you will forget you are reading words on a page; the book in your hands will become a portable window into the interior lives of two remarkable sisters."
–Stefan Merrill Block, author of The Story of Forgetting

"In shining prose, Rebecca Rasmussen brings to life the world of Milly and Twiss —characters written with such grace and tenderness that I fell in love with them at once. The Bird Sisters is a lush and moving story about discovery and disappointment, failing and forgiveness, and the enduring bond of family. It’s a beautiful novel."
–Aryn Kyle, author of The God of Animals

“In THE BIRD SISTERS, Rebecca Rasmussen has created the ultimate literary heroines with Milly and Twiss. Heartbreakingly brave as they are fragile, the sisters endure despite the failings of love both familial and romantic, of promises not kept, of dreams deferred and the price one pays for keeping secrets. In prose that sings, Rasmussen has created a magical world where you will believe that birds – and perhaps even humans — no matter how broken — will soar under the capable ministrations of Milly and Twiss.” 
—Robin Antalek, author of The Summer We Fell Apart

Product Description

Love is timeless. So too is heartbreak.

Whenever a bird flies into a window in Spring Green, Wisconsin, sisters Milly and Twiss get a visit. Twiss listens to the birds' heartbeats, assessing what she can fix and what she can't, while Milly listens to the heartaches of the people who've brought them. The two sisters have spent their lives nursing people and birds back to health.

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But back in the summer of 1947, Milly was known as a great beauty with emerald eyes and Twiss was a brazen wild child who never wore a dress or did what she was told. That was the summer their golf pro father got into an accident that cost him both his swing and his charm, and their mother, the daughter of a wealthy jeweler, finally admitted their hardscrabble lives wouldn't change. It was the summer their priest, Father Rice, announced that God didn't exist and ran off to Mexico, and a boy named Asa finally caught Milly's eye. And most unforgettably, it was the summer their cousin Bett came down from a town called Deadwater and changed the course of their lives forever.

(added by author)

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Crown (April 12, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307717968
• ISBN-13: 978-0307717962
• Shipping Information: View shipping rates and policies
• Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #781,046 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)