Nationally bestselling author of The Music of Bees Eileen Garvin returns with a moving story of hope, healing, and unexpected friendship set amidst the wild natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest.
Frankie O’Neill and Anne Ryan would seem to have nothing in common. Frankie is a lonely ornithologist struggling to salvage her dissertation on the spotted owl following a rift with her advisor. Anne is an Irish musician far from home and family, raising her five-year-old son, Aiden, who refuses to speak.
At Beauty Bay, a community of summer homes nestled on the shores of June Lake, in the remote foothills of Mount Adams, it’s off-season with most houses shuttered for the fall. But Frankie, adrift, returns to the rundown caretaker’s cottage that has been in the hardworking O'Neill family for generations—a beloved place and a constant reminder of the family she has lost. And Anne, in the wake of a tragedy that has disrupted her career and silenced her music, has fled to the neighboring house, a showy summer home owned by her husband's wealthy family.
When Frankie finds an injured baby crow in the forest, little does she realize that the charming bird will bring all three lost souls—Frankie, Anne, and Aiden—together on a journey toward hope, healing, and rediscovering joy. Crow Talk is an achingly beautiful story of love, grief, friendship, and the healing power of nature in the darkest of times.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Frankie O’Neill and Anne Ryan would seem to have nothing in common. Frankie is a lonely ornithologist struggling to salvage her dissertation on the spotted owl following a rift with her advisor. Anne is an Irish musician far from home and family, raising her five-year-old son, Aiden, who refuses to speak.
At Beauty Bay, a community of summer homes nestled on the shores of June Lake, in the remote foothills of Mount Adams, it’s off-season with most houses shuttered for the fall. But Frankie, adrift, returns to the rundown caretaker’s cottage that has been in the hardworking O'Neill family for generations—a beloved place and a constant reminder of the family she has lost. And Anne, in the wake of a tragedy that has disrupted her career and silenced her music, has fled to the neighboring house, a showy summer home owned by her husband's wealthy family.
When Frankie finds an injured baby crow in the forest, little does she realize that the charming bird will bring all three lost souls—Frankie, Anne, and Aiden—together on a journey toward hope, healing, and rediscovering joy. Crow Talk is an achingly beautiful story of love, grief, friendship, and the healing power of nature in the darkest of times.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"In Garvin's beautiful novel, Frankie and Anne retreat to Beauty Bay hoping to find healing in nature, but it is their unexpected new friendship that offers each a path away from alienation and grief. This is the deep wisdom of Crow Talk, that caring for others - children, friends, crows - is a way to learn (or remember) how to care for ourselves." - Claire Boyles
"This novel did more than just engage me as a reader, it completely transported me. Crow Talk is keenly observant, highly atmospheric, and full of hope. Garvin writes with great warmth and pathos about the majesty of the natural world, as well as the untamed wilds of the human heart." - Jonathan Evison
"Eileen Garvin deftly explores our human connections - with each other, with nature, and with ourselves. Crow Talk will leave you in awe at how the smallest, most tender moments can hold the power to transform. A beautiful, unforgettable book." - Shelby Van Pelt
"Bursting with beautifully detailed observations of Pacific Northwest wildlife, Crow Talk will speak to the hearts of nature and bird lovers. Eileen Garvin's story is itself a rich ecosystem that interconnects two women's family histories, traumas, fears, disappointments - and above all, their determination to heal. As biologist Frankie attempts to decipher the language of crows and songwriter Anne tries to understand why her son can't speak, the new friends find themselves muted in multiple ways - unable to pursue their scientific and creative passions, ask for help, set limits, forgive. The crows in the story always know how to speak their minds, and perhaps there are lessons to be learned from their candid communications. This book is a must-read for crow devotees and critics alike!" - Glendy Vanderah
"This novel did more than just engage me as a reader, it completely transported me. Crow Talk is keenly observant, highly atmospheric, and full of hope. Garvin writes with great warmth and pathos about the majesty of the natural world, as well as the untamed wilds of the human heart." - Jonathan Evison
"Eileen Garvin deftly explores our human connections - with each other, with nature, and with ourselves. Crow Talk will leave you in awe at how the smallest, most tender moments can hold the power to transform. A beautiful, unforgettable book." - Shelby Van Pelt
"Bursting with beautifully detailed observations of Pacific Northwest wildlife, Crow Talk will speak to the hearts of nature and bird lovers. Eileen Garvin's story is itself a rich ecosystem that interconnects two women's family histories, traumas, fears, disappointments - and above all, their determination to heal. As biologist Frankie attempts to decipher the language of crows and songwriter Anne tries to understand why her son can't speak, the new friends find themselves muted in multiple ways - unable to pursue their scientific and creative passions, ask for help, set limits, forgive. The crows in the story always know how to speak their minds, and perhaps there are lessons to be learned from their candid communications. This book is a must-read for crow devotees and critics alike!" - Glendy Vanderah
Visitors also looked at these books
Used availability for Eileen Garvin's Crow Talk