Stephen Usery interviews Diana Abu Jaber about her new novel, Birds of Paradise. Set in southern Florida in 2005, a family struggles with after effects of a runaway daughter who stays in just enough touch to keep the wounds open as her mother, father, and brother all try to move forward in their lives.
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Birds of Paradise had me hooked from the start, and took me on a meandering, tense journey that I won't soon forget.
The book tells the story of a family's heartbreak over the seemingly causeless runaway of their 14 year old daughter. Each chapter is told from a different perspective, and gives us insight into how each family member deals with that heartbreak individually, from the mother, father, brother - and the runaway herself.
Through much of the book, I was left wondering what exactly led to the family's current predicament, but as the details begin to slowly take shape, I realized that the `why' was not nearly as important as the effect it had on this family. I wanted to sit down, shake each one of them, and make them listen to each other.
Diana Abu-Jaber's writing is completely breathtaking. It is books like this that make me want to give up on my own fiction. From grief, to despair, to hopefulness and back again, this is a book that will make you feel.
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