When seventeen-year-old, small-town Australian girl Manon Clarkeson leaves home in the middle of the night, wearing her mother's long, inappropriate red silk dress and riding her bike, she is heading for Melbourne, not exactly sure what she is looking for but not wanting to stay at home alone with her father anymore.
Overall, the book is very quiet. The writing is terrific and, in a way, kind of pretty. Murray has a talent for turning ordinary things into something beautiful. While the book gets interesting when the past and secrets are uncovered, the book is too quiet for my taste. It did not compel me to keep reading, though I did read the whole book. There was a lot more character development than plot in my opinion. Some people have no problem with that in a book, but this was not my cup of tea (for lack of a better cliche). Furthermore, for those looking for light, happy reads, be warned that How to Make a Bird is certainly not up-beat. Mannie's tale is sad and depressing, but not to the level of a book like The Lovely Bones (which is too much for me to have handled...).
In conclusion, I think that this is a good book, but just not a good book for me. I think many people who find "quiet" books entertaining will like this one.
Reading updates
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Started reading
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2 August, 2010:
Finished reading
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2 August, 2010:
Reviewed