“A blindingly beautiful book” — Caroline Leavitt
“Reed’s painterly descriptions of the Oregon coast are so vivid and real, so beautiful and lyrical that her writing is more like a visual art form.” — Portland Tribune
June is in transition, reeling from her divorce and trying to stay sober. She returns to the Oregon coast where she grew up, and must decide what to do with her late and much-loved grandparents’ charming cedar-shingled home, a place haunted by memories of her childhood.
Jameson comes highly recommended to renovate the old house to sell, and from their first contact, he senses a connection with June. He too is unmoored as he struggles to redefine his marriage in the aftermath of loss. But what can the future hold as long as they are gripped so firmly by the past?
The Days When Birds Come Back, like the house itself, is a graceful testament to endurance, rebuilding, and the possibilities of coming home.
“Reed shines with a light hand and direct storytelling, but her characters are what make this novel move—their vulnerability, imperfect recovery, and endearing loss for words.” — Booklist
“Deborah Reed plies the reader with beautiful sentence after beautiful sentence.” — BookPage
Genre: Literary Fiction
“Reed’s painterly descriptions of the Oregon coast are so vivid and real, so beautiful and lyrical that her writing is more like a visual art form.” — Portland Tribune
June is in transition, reeling from her divorce and trying to stay sober. She returns to the Oregon coast where she grew up, and must decide what to do with her late and much-loved grandparents’ charming cedar-shingled home, a place haunted by memories of her childhood.
Jameson comes highly recommended to renovate the old house to sell, and from their first contact, he senses a connection with June. He too is unmoored as he struggles to redefine his marriage in the aftermath of loss. But what can the future hold as long as they are gripped so firmly by the past?
The Days When Birds Come Back, like the house itself, is a graceful testament to endurance, rebuilding, and the possibilities of coming home.
“Reed shines with a light hand and direct storytelling, but her characters are what make this novel move—their vulnerability, imperfect recovery, and endearing loss for words.” — Booklist
“Deborah Reed plies the reader with beautiful sentence after beautiful sentence.” — BookPage
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"A haunting story of love and loss, the days when birds come back is the kind of book that you sink into on the first page and don’t want to leave. Deborah Reed’s characters are both flawed and sympathetic, and their struggle to make terms with the past gives this novel a wonderful urgency." - Jane Delury
"In Reed’s achingly exquisite latest, two scarred-by-life souls—a divorcee and a man toppled by tragedy—hide from their pasts by together renovating an old Oregon house. About the love we’ve lost, the mistakes and secrets we're afraid to reveal, and a haunting reminder that second chances aren’t just given—we have to be brave enough to earn them. A blindingly beautiful book." - Caroline Leavitt
"The Days When Birds Come Back haunted me every day I read it, and has continued to ever since. I don’t believe I’ve ever read such an exquisitely painful story that has on a daily basis so affected the way I interact with other humans, especially my dearest loved ones. This is a novel that makes me want to pay better attention." - Bonnie Nadzam
"The Days When Birds Come Back is a gorgeous meditation of the importance of paying attention to one thing in particular: the indelible map our past creates. In Reed’s dazzling new novel, we find a mesmerizing melding of two very different tales: one involving random tragedy, another based on misunderstanding, both bound by the power of regret. As the stories merge, we discover that the inescapable insistence that we must face our truth, change our map, and thereby find the truest and best course for the future. In this raw and honest journey of addiction, love, trauma, and redemption, we discover that lives can be mended, maps re-drawn. Whether by adopting a child, restoring a home, or by acknowledging a love that deserves it, Reed has reminded us that we can only fully claim our lives when we embrace our history." - Laura Pritchett
"In Reed’s achingly exquisite latest, two scarred-by-life souls—a divorcee and a man toppled by tragedy—hide from their pasts by together renovating an old Oregon house. About the love we’ve lost, the mistakes and secrets we're afraid to reveal, and a haunting reminder that second chances aren’t just given—we have to be brave enough to earn them. A blindingly beautiful book." - Caroline Leavitt
"The Days When Birds Come Back haunted me every day I read it, and has continued to ever since. I don’t believe I’ve ever read such an exquisitely painful story that has on a daily basis so affected the way I interact with other humans, especially my dearest loved ones. This is a novel that makes me want to pay better attention." - Bonnie Nadzam
"The Days When Birds Come Back is a gorgeous meditation of the importance of paying attention to one thing in particular: the indelible map our past creates. In Reed’s dazzling new novel, we find a mesmerizing melding of two very different tales: one involving random tragedy, another based on misunderstanding, both bound by the power of regret. As the stories merge, we discover that the inescapable insistence that we must face our truth, change our map, and thereby find the truest and best course for the future. In this raw and honest journey of addiction, love, trauma, and redemption, we discover that lives can be mended, maps re-drawn. Whether by adopting a child, restoring a home, or by acknowledging a love that deserves it, Reed has reminded us that we can only fully claim our lives when we embrace our history." - Laura Pritchett
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