Be Light Like a Bird

Gr 5–8—Wren is grieving. Her father has just passed away, his body lost at sea after a flying lesson crash. She would like nothing more than to talk with, cry with, or even just get a hug from her mom, but her mother is grieving in a different way—she's angry, and she doesn't want to talk about it. After burning all of her husband's papers and getting rid of all his possessions, she packs up the car and drives Wren north out of Georgia, to a new life. A couple of weeks later, they move on again. And then again. Finally, they can't get any further north than Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and Wren decides she won't let her mom move them anymore. Being the new kid in sixth grade isn't easy, but she does manage to get to know Theo, a boy who also has a deceased parent. Wren and Theo discover that the town dump is planning to expand and fill in the wetland where Wren likes to bird-watch, and they begin to form a friendship as they research and start an environmental movement against the plan, with the help of several caring adults in town. In this book, readers experience the many different forms that grief can take and the varied effects it can have on people. Despite the heavy theme, the story is not mired in mourning, and the empowerment that Wren and Theo begin to feel as they work together is uplifting. Some of the secondary characters are one-dimensional, and the arc of Wren's mother's journey is a little uneven; however, overall, this is a thoughtful novel.