First published 2019
Leigh Chen Sanders believes her mother transformed into a bird when she died by suicide. Half Asian and half white, Leigh flies to Taiwan to meet her maternal grandparents for the first time. She plans to find her mother in bird form. Her search leads her through encounters with ghosts and buried family secrets. She builds new bonds with her grandparents while processing her grief. The timing torments her. On the same day her mother took her own life, Leigh kissed Axel, her best friend and secret crush. Now she struggles to reconcile these opposing moments of connection and loss. The story moves between reality and magic, shifting from past to present as Leigh navigates friendship, romance, hope, and despair. Through family history, art, and love, she searches for herself while mourning her mother.
Genres: contemporary, magical-realism, young-adult, asian-american, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Taiwan
480 pages · Hardcover · Epsilon Yayinevi
Content warnings: suicide