That Bird Has My Wings
An Oprah's Book Club Pick
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3.5 • 255 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
That Bird Has My Wings is the astounding memoir of death row inmate Jarvis Masters and a testament to the tenacity of the human spirit and the talent of a fine writer. Offering scenes from his life that are at times poignant, revelatory, frightening, soul-stirring, painful, funny, and uplifting, That Bird Has My Wings tells the story of the author’s childhood with parents addicted to heroin, an abusive foster family, a life of crime and imprisonment, and the eventual embracing of Buddhism.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
This searing autobiography recounts the horrendous circumstances that landed the author on death row. Born to heroin-addicted parents and raised in a series of abusive foster homes, Jarvis Masters never had much of a chance. By 19, he was imprisoned in San Quentin. But it wasn’t until he was sentenced to death—after an accessory-to-murder conviction in 1990—that Masters, then 23, converted to Buddhism and found new meaning in life. As he recounts his harrowing tale of life on the streets and in the broken foster system, Masters paints an incredibly moving picture of what led to his life of crime, making a compelling case for justice reform. That Bird Has My Wings is a poignant and truly uplifting tribute to the power of the human spirit.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this polished tale that belies the author's raw origins, Masters (Finding Freedom), who has been imprisoned on San Quentin's death row since 1990 and become a devout Buddhist, recalls the neglect, abuse and cycle of crime and hopelessness that relegated him to prison by age 19. As a child in the late '60s, Masters and his siblings were shut up in their house in Long Beach, Calif., because their mother and stepfather had turned the place into a heroin den. Filthy, starved and whipped, the children eventually attracted the attention of neighbors, then were scattered among foster homes. Despite a happy period spent with a caring, elderly Christian couple, Jarvis was once again uprooted, this time to a hardened, joyless home where the other foster boys quickly taught him the ropes to survive. Dispirited, he ran away repeatedly from age 10 on, and the book largely follows his trajectory from one institution to the next, from McLaren Hall, where he enjoyed a sense of belonging, to the abusive Valley Boys Academy, where he was trained like a pitbull to fight the other boys. Being united with his extended family in Harbor City was both a blessing and a curse, because they gradually dragged him into a downward spiral of robbery, violence and jail. Masters's claim of innocence in the murder that landed him on death row is beside the point in this work that's a frank, heartfelt rendering of a young life that should have mattered.
Customer Reviews
A serenity prayer
The passive symbolisms of bondage and freedom are what made this novel unfavorable to me but devourable all the same
You will find that the short lived spotlight that was shown on the critical moments of despair in the beginning stages of a disadvantaged young man’s life is to be appreciated.
I disliked the Mismanagement and misallocation of Resources stemming from a barren and dysfunctional Americanized system for a young man’s life who had far more hope and tenacity than the manner in which he viewed himself or those in which he placed his hope in.
I was extremely disappointed in how his personal instances of loss, separation, abuse, and growing pains were sugar coated. Although there was a weight centered on what was remaining in his familial moments of reunion, we see that his self will is enough to lead him on his path from dependency, and hopelessness to self-reclamation. The Expendable redefined courage.
I especially liked the emphasis on how actions speak louder than words”, and the undisputed symbolism at a pivotal moment. The main character makes a statement at this crucial time: DONT SHOOT that 🦅 🦢 🐦…. iT HAS my wings! He in a sense becomes the proverbial messenger in place of all the others who came before him. It’s shocking how he was able to make out this desperate plea after his own “wings” or ability and those who he cared for or were supposed to care for him or enabled him were nowhere to be seen in that commanding sense. His actions demonstrate that he was more than a conqueror in his ability to show good will and leadership towards others around him despite all of the Ill will he had experienced throughout his short life. And that was about the only portion that I liked.
Review
Great story. Easy to read.
Astonishing
Loved this book, I recommend it to anyone; it has good points for all people