A Catalog of Birds
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3.5 • 4 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
This novel of a wounded Vietnam veteran's homecoming is both "a searing war story and a page-turning thriller" (The Washington Post).
Billy Flynn has always wanted to fly, like the birds he draws with pencils and paints. He is also a patriot, so in 1970 he cannot resist the call to serve in Vietnam. A year later, he is the only one to survive after his helicopter is shot down.
A wounded Billy returns home to his family in upstate New York, including Nell, his adoring younger sister. In his absence, the woman he loves has mysteriously disappeared. His wounds have crippled his ability to hold a pencil and his hearing loss has cut him off from the natural world he loves so much. Nell, a brilliant student headed for a career in science, is determined to do all that's possible to save him.
A Catalog of Birds is the story of a community confronted with shattered innocence and with wounds that may never heal, in "a beautiful book about family, loss, and love [whose] memorable characters will haunt you long after you put it down" (Claire Messud, New York Times–bestselling author of The Woman Upstairs).
"Stunning natural descriptions provide a rich backdrop for Harrington's beautifully articulated coming-of-age story, which captures the pain of loved ones grappling with the after effects of war." —Booklist (starred review)
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Harrington (Alice Bliss) reexamines familiar topics in her second novel, tenderly sketching a portrait of war's lasting impact on veterans who returned from the conflict alive but not entirely whole and the loved ones who were waiting for them at home. Billy Flynn, a young man with a deep connection to the wildlife in his sleepy upstate New York hometown, struggles to reassemble his shattered life after his medic helicopter is shot down in Vietnam. Billy's failed attempt to rescue his copilot leaves him with severe burns, nerve damage that destroys his ability to fly or draw, and guilt-laced anger that drowns out his efforts to sleep at night or pursue his old ambitions during the day. His younger sister, Nell, puts her college plans on hold as she fights to hold her disintegrating family together. The narrative progresses slowly, digging unflinchingly into the wounds that linger long after a battlefield has been emptied. While some plot threads are left dangling at the conclusion, Harrington excels at creating believable characters with nuanced motivations. Her prose sings, sweeping through heavy topics with a quiet sense of resilience and buoyant hope.
