The Language of Sparrows

The Language of Sparros
Rachel Phifer
David C. Cook
July 2013
Fiction

Brilliant and fluent in too many languages to count, 15-year-old Sierra Wright can't seem to communicate what is important to her in any language. 

Though April Wright stubbornly keeps an upbeat attitude about her daughter's future, she has let her own dreams slip away. 

Just across the bridge lives old Luca, scarred from his time in a Romanian gulag years before. Though he has seemingly given up on people, Sierra is drawn to him despite his prickly edges. No one else is comfortable with the unpredictable old man spending time alone with Sierra, not even Luca's son. Yet it is this unconventional relationship that will bring two families together to form friendships and unearth their family stories, stories that just might give them all the courage to soar on wings toward a new future.

If you've been a follower of this book review blog for any amount of time you know I'm not a huge modern day fiction girl. I love historical fiction. It's pretty rare for a modern day book to grab my attention. Enter The Language of Sparrows I was hooked in the first page and read for hours finishing the book in a day. Welcome new author Rachel Phifer! Phifer wrote a captivating and deep book. Way to go! 

Sierra is precious and I loved her. She was both strong and odd and unique, in all the good ways. April gets a bit annoying with her seeming lack of involvement but once you get to know her story you quickly understand why. There is a bit of a romance that takes place between Luca's son Nic and April, beware. It's super sweet. 

Luca will capture your heart, break it, and then put it back together. He's a well rounded and deep character. As he tells his story you are transported back to Romania 30 years before. It's historical and shocking. 

In short, I loved this book. It has enough layers I just might read it again. I highly recommend it and tip my hat to this new author. I'm already looking for her next book! 

My sincere thanks to my friends at David C. Cook for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for my real and honest review.