Literature & Fiction
![Emme Lund - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_a_emme_lund.jpg)
The Boy with a Bird in His Chest: A Novel
Longlisted for The Center for Fiction 2022 First Novel Prize
A "poignantly rendered and illuminating" (The Washington Post) coming-of-age story about "the ways in which family, grief, love, queerness, and vulnerability all intersect" (Kristen Arnett, New York Times bestselling author). Perfect for fans of The Perks of Being a Wallflower and The Thirty Names of Night.
Though Owen Tanner has never met anyone else who has a chatty bird in their chest, medical forums would call him a Terror. From the moment Gail emerged between Owen's ribs, his mother knew that she had to hide him away from the world. After a decade spent in isolation, Owen takes a brazen trip outdoors and his life is upended forever.
Suddenly, he is forced to flee the home that had once felt so confining and hide in plain sight with his uncle and cousin in Washington. There, he feels the joy of finding a family among friends; of sharing the bird in his chest and being embraced fully; of falling in love and feeling the devastating heartbreak of rejection before finding a spark of happiness in the most unexpected place; of living his truth regardless of how hard the thieves of joy may try to tear him down. But the threat of the Army of Acronyms is a constant, looming presence, making Owen wonder if he'll ever find a way out of the cycle of fear.
"An honest celebration of life and everything we need right now in a book" (Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize–winning author), The Boy with a Bird in His Chest grapples with the fear, depression, and feelings of isolation that come with believing that we will never be loved for who we truly are and learning to live fully and openly regardless.
A "poignantly rendered and illuminating" (The Washington Post) coming-of-age story about "the ways in which family, grief, love, queerness, and vulnerability all intersect" (Kristen Arnett, New York Times bestselling author). Perfect for fans of The Perks of Being a Wallflower and The Thirty Names of Night.
Though Owen Tanner has never met anyone else who has a chatty bird in their chest, medical forums would call him a Terror. From the moment Gail emerged between Owen's ribs, his mother knew that she had to hide him away from the world. After a decade spent in isolation, Owen takes a brazen trip outdoors and his life is upended forever.
Suddenly, he is forced to flee the home that had once felt so confining and hide in plain sight with his uncle and cousin in Washington. There, he feels the joy of finding a family among friends; of sharing the bird in his chest and being embraced fully; of falling in love and feeling the devastating heartbreak of rejection before finding a spark of happiness in the most unexpected place; of living his truth regardless of how hard the thieves of joy may try to tear him down. But the threat of the Army of Acronyms is a constant, looming presence, making Owen wonder if he'll ever find a way out of the cycle of fear.
"An honest celebration of life and everything we need right now in a book" (Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize–winning author), The Boy with a Bird in His Chest grapples with the fear, depression, and feelings of isolation that come with believing that we will never be loved for who we truly are and learning to live fully and openly regardless.
Editorial Reviews
"Lund has created a fable for our age: a modern coming of age full of love, desperation, heartache and magic. An honest celebration of life and everything we need right now in a book." -- Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Less
"Emme Lund's The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is a beautiful, tender book. I was deeply moved by this story; very caught up in the ways in which family, grief, love, queerness, and vulnerability all intersect. Lund's sentences are sweet and stick to your ribs. I found myself falling in love with these characters-these messy, deeply realized, fully lovable, and wonderfully human people. The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is a terrific first novel and Emme Lund is a profoundly gifted writer." -- Kristen Arnett, New York Times bestselling author of Mostly Dead Things and With Teeth
"The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is a beautiful and atmospheric allegory for what we hide in the world, executed with tense lyricism." -- Christine Hyung-Oak Lee, author of Tell Me Everything You Don't Remember
"Emme Lund's The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is the queer coming of age novel I wish I'd had when I was a teenager. Funny and gutting, tender and scorchingly honest, surreal and a little too real, this novel captures the pain and joy of learning to live with your body and all its desires. The Boy with a Bird in His Chest reads like The Perks of Being a Wallflowers written by Kelly Link. Lund's vision is striking, resonant, and unforgettable." -- Isle McElroy, author of The Atmospherians, a New York Times Editors' Choice
"Lund's accomplished debut imagines an LGBTQ allegory with a blend of magical fantasy and stark reality. [. . .] Lund's emotive prose treats Owen's burgeoning development with grace and care. This fine effort succeeds at bringing new life to the coming-of-age story." ― Publishers Weekly
"A lovely piece of magical realism . . . the strangeness sets it apart from other coming-of-age stories. Embrace magic and suspend your disbelief and this novel may just take you on a beautiful, necessary journey." ― Kirkus Reviews
"The burden of living with a secret is poignantly rendered and illuminating for those who seek to understand living a life outside the ordinary." ― The Washington Post
"Emme Lund has managed to capture so many of t...
"Emme Lund's The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is a beautiful, tender book. I was deeply moved by this story; very caught up in the ways in which family, grief, love, queerness, and vulnerability all intersect. Lund's sentences are sweet and stick to your ribs. I found myself falling in love with these characters-these messy, deeply realized, fully lovable, and wonderfully human people. The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is a terrific first novel and Emme Lund is a profoundly gifted writer." -- Kristen Arnett, New York Times bestselling author of Mostly Dead Things and With Teeth
"The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is a beautiful and atmospheric allegory for what we hide in the world, executed with tense lyricism." -- Christine Hyung-Oak Lee, author of Tell Me Everything You Don't Remember
"Emme Lund's The Boy with a Bird in His Chest is the queer coming of age novel I wish I'd had when I was a teenager. Funny and gutting, tender and scorchingly honest, surreal and a little too real, this novel captures the pain and joy of learning to live with your body and all its desires. The Boy with a Bird in His Chest reads like The Perks of Being a Wallflowers written by Kelly Link. Lund's vision is striking, resonant, and unforgettable." -- Isle McElroy, author of The Atmospherians, a New York Times Editors' Choice
"Lund's accomplished debut imagines an LGBTQ allegory with a blend of magical fantasy and stark reality. [. . .] Lund's emotive prose treats Owen's burgeoning development with grace and care. This fine effort succeeds at bringing new life to the coming-of-age story." ― Publishers Weekly
"A lovely piece of magical realism . . . the strangeness sets it apart from other coming-of-age stories. Embrace magic and suspend your disbelief and this novel may just take you on a beautiful, necessary journey." ― Kirkus Reviews
"The burden of living with a secret is poignantly rendered and illuminating for those who seek to understand living a life outside the ordinary." ― The Washington Post
"Emme Lund has managed to capture so many of t...
Readers Top Reviews
KitGrace
*I received an advanced ecopy of this book via NetGalley. This has not influenced my review.* I enjoyed this slow-paced, character-focused, LGBT+ coming-of-age story. There isn’t a goal-oriented plot, it’s more just about Owen’s life through his childhood and teen years, experiencing things, trying to keep his secret safe, and trying to find his place in the world as someone who is different. There’s a romance in the end, but not a lot of romance throughout. Owen deals with some harsh and realistic struggles, like homophobia and a mother who is pretty neglectful, but the story ends on an imperfect but hopeful note. This is very much a book about being different and feeling unlovable but wanting love. About feeling like you have to hide your differences, whether because your safety would actually be at risk or because you’re worried what people might think. The bird in Owen’s chest could really symbolize any sort of difference that isn’t bad in and of itself but is made difficult because of other people’s judgment and prejudice. Though probably especially Q-ness (as in, LGBTQ, but Amazon doesn't seem to allow the word in reviews) because… There are a lot of LGBT+ characters in this book, including Owen. No specific labels, but some mlm and wlw attraction and relationships, and kind of general Q-ness and just not super conforming to cishet norms. The bird in chest element was an important part of the story in that it impacted everything from the plot to Owen’s view of the world and himself, but it was still kind of small and quiet. Presented in a kind of matter-of-fact way. Just part of Owen’s life. The writing had this sort of floaty feel. Almost kind of hazy. A style that worked well for a book about a character who is sheltered and then thrust into a socially/emotionally-disorienting situation. (Owen had no schooling until high school and spent his life before that confined to his house with just his mom and bird.) I have mixed feelings about the characters and relationships. Except for Owen (and maybe even a little bit Owen), they felt kinda flat. It could make sense from Owen’s POV, maybe he just didn’t know them super well, but I would’ve liked to know the character he was supposedly in love with a bit better. (I at least knew the love interest enough to know he was gentle and sweet.) The more I think about it, the more it feels like this was a solitary, in-his-own-head kind of story. I can remember time Owen spent with people that was kinda summarized, and other time that was more drawn-out and detailed but Owen was mostly in his thoughts and feelings. That could’ve been a purposeful choice by the author though, or I could be forgetting, so it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Owen didn’t seem to have a lot of strong bonds, and even some of the bonds he felt strongest were stretched and frayed. The...
Cheri PowellConstant
I kept waiting for the bird to be a metaphor for something. Not so. We are supposed to believe it is real. And he is a Terror. A Terror? I think the author is trying to set up for a sequel. I found nothing terrible or terrifying. The main character did not change much throughout the book. The exception is that puberty kicked in and he became very horny. But he was still immature and irresponsible and incapable of making sound decisions. If we are to suspend belief and try to imagine an actual bird living in the rib cage of a human we have to consider the questions of how it ate and defecated. It is not like a chimera where the bodies are fused, but a separate entity. Had to force myself to read to the end. I was hoping for a different ending.
billi westbrook
I loved everything about this book. The author has such a way with words. It's such a beautiful story about a group of misfits and their struggles with life.
Hannah
I loved the way the author brought the characters to life. The way she made you feel like you were sitting in the same room or forest or on the beach next to the boy with the bird in his chest. Magical.
Fesparza71
If you’ve ever felt different or not present. This book shares your life. Loved every page. Couldn’t put it down. Bought it for a summer read. Finished it in just a few weeks. So happy I picked it up. Thank you
