Review: Fun, sweet read!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 3, 2014
Complimentary copy provided in exchange for an honest review.Wren is at a crossroads in her life. An only child, she’s in her late 20s and has lost both of her parents to cancer. Her personal life leaves a lot to be desired, considering her “boyfriend” is a co-worker (and son of one of the partners in the firm they both work) and a bit of an ass, but her professional life is one to be envied. Working as an economist, she’s good at what she does and can see herself on Forbes’ list of 30 under 30. But when she is passed over for a promotion in which she was obviously more qualified for, she has to reevaluate her entire life, both professionally and personally.Lawrence, or Laurie for short, is a mechanic. He lives in the small town of Birdseye where Wren grew up. He is also an artist, primarily painting wildlife, birds in particular. He’s happy with his life the way it is, with the exception of dealing with the guilt of losing his fiancée in an accident, and his best friend to a roadside attack in Afghanistan. When Laurie meets Wren as she is in town settling her father’s estate, they both seem to find what is missing in their lives with each other. The problem is, Wren needs to analyze her priorities, because Birdseye is a long ways from Chicago where she currently lives and works.During her trip to Birdseye when she is tying up the loose ends of her father’s estate, she finds a journal that she and her father had kept while birding for a summer after the loss of her mother. In an effort to find herself, she decides to recreate some of the trips they took. The journal includes photos, as well as life advice from her father, which Wren takes to heart. On these trips, she finds several origami cranes with letters written by and to a stranger and she is immediately intrigued, adding them to the journal she keeps during her journey.Bird After Bird was a quick, cute, sweet, read. I was immediately drawn into the story as it was well written and the characters were charming and likeable. My biggest issue with the book though was the use of the bird theme throughout the book. I applaud Ms. Tash for being able to use the theme to the extent that she did and she obviously is incredibly creative and did a ton of research, but unfortunately, after a while, it began to become a bit campy. I think some of the sweeter and more poignant moments may have been overshadowed by some groan-worthy puns or double entendre. For this reason, Bird After Bird was a four star read. Ms. Tash definitely knows how to write a story that keeps the reader engaged, but we don’t need to be constantly hit over the head with the theme, it’s quite evident it’s there. This is my first book by Ms. Tash, and definitely won’t be my last.