Title: The Bird Sisters
Author: Rebecca Rasmussen
Narrator: Xe Sands
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Pages: 304
Audio: 8.1 hours
Year: 2011
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Source: Library
Book Rating: 2/5
Audio Rating: 3.5/5
Summary:
From the publisher:
When 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. These spinster sisters have spent their lives nursing people and birds back to health.
But back in the summer of 1947, Milly and Twiss knew nothing about trying to mend what had been accidentally broken. 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.
My Thoughts:
Oh, readers. This was not the book for me and I don’t really have much to say except that.
It kind of felt like nothing happened for long periods of time. I was bored and never got into the story. I kept wondering what the point of the story was. To me it was like she was telling a story that didn’t need to be told.
The writing itself was good. It was the story that lost me. I will be interested to see what else Rasmussen writes, though I will be a bit hesitant to give it a read.
This book got a lot of stellar reviews. Do a quick search and I’m sure you will see plenty. It just wasn’t the book for me.
Audiobook Thoughts:
I’m a little sad that this was my first time listening to Xe Sands. We are friendly on Twitter and I have wanted to listen to her for a long time. Xe has a soft, sensual voice and I think it actually worked well for a subtle book like this. I just hope the next time I listen to her, it’s a book that I like better. I can’t fault the audio production for that (I’ve been assured by a trusted friend that this book was just as boring in print).
my books. my life. 
I tried to read this book in print and couldn’t get past the scene in the Catholic Church. It was peculiar and didn’t feel right. I bought the audiobook, but just don’t have the heart to listen. I thought it was me. It’s nice to know I’m not alone.
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It isn’t just you, I read the whole thing, but I’m with Michelle in liking the writing a lot more than the story.
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I am really glad that I didn’t buy this one, because I was on the fence for so long, and I almost pulled the trigger for it. It does sound like it’s kind of a boring read, and that makes me sad, but I am glad to have had your honest opinion.
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Thanks so much for your kind words on the performance, and the honest thoughts on the book. I too am very much looking forward to what Rasmussen writes next…and I persist in my wish that Milly had made a different choice.
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I didn’t get very far in this one before I put it down (in print). And I honestly don’t remember what exactly it was that made me abandon it, but it wasn’t for me, either.
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I have this one on my nook, and I feel awful but I didn’t finish it either. I adore Rebecca on twitter etc but the story was just so SLOW for me. My mom read it and she liked it, so who knows. It was hard for me to not like it when I like the author so much.
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Okay, so I remember when everyone was reading this (and loving it) and I thought to myself, “how odd”.
And then, recently, I borrowed it from the library (audio format) and my feelings were even MORE filled with “how oddness” because this book bored the ever living life out of me.
Even in my car, with nothing else to ‘read’, I stopped it and opted for the radio. Which, blerg, commercials.
Kudos for you for finishing it.
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