The Gravity of Birds - Softcover

Guzeman, Tracy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1451689772 ISBN 13: 9781451689778

Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2014

Synopsis

A debut novel already destined to be a book club favorite. "With its deft interweaving of psychological complexity and riveting narrative momentum, with its gorgeous prose and poetic justice, The Gravity of Birds is about sibling rivalry, tragedies, and resurrections. And it's irresistibly exquisite" (San Francisco Chronicle).

Forty-four years after the brilliant young painter, Thomas Bayber, first meets Alice and Natalie Kessler, Bayber unveils a never-before-seen work, Kessler Sisters--a provocative painting depicting the young Thomas, Alice, and Natalie. Bayber asks Dennis Finch, an art history professor, and Stephen Jameson, an eccentric young art authenticator, to sell the painting. But their task becomes more complicated when the artist requires that they first locate Alice and Natalie, who seem to have disappeared.

Told in alternating chapters that weave revelations about the sisters' past with clues Finch and Jameson discover in the present, this story sets three characters on a collision course with their histories, showing how families tear themselves apart and then try to bind themselves together again, not always creating the same fabric. The Gravity of Birds "combines the drama of warring sisters, the mystery of a missing painting, and the sorrow of lost love into a haunting elegy that will...leave you breathless" (Tiffany Baker, author of The Little Giant of Aberdeen County).

About this title

Review:

"The Gravity of Birds is one of those rare, exquisitely written novels that haunt you long after you've finished the last page. Guzeman writes of both the fragility of the human spirit and its inner strength. The book unfurls like a hidden canvas, soaked with color, emotional longing, and a desire to make sense of what is often too painful to be said without the assistance of art. It is a novel not to be missed."--Alyson Richman, best-selling author of The Lost Wife

"A lovely, mesmerizing novel. The Gravity of Birds combines the drama of warring sisters, the mystery of a missing painting, and the sorrow of lost love into a haunting elegy that will, like the artwork it describes, leave you breathless. The paintings and characters that Tracy Guzeman creates will seep into your imagination and take up permanent residence, changing the way you think about art."--Tiffany Baker, author of The Little Giant of Aberdeen County and The Gilly Salt Sisters

"Lovely! The Gravity of Birds is a warm-hearted, assured, and haunting debut. In prose that is always graceful and often breathtaking, Tracy Guzeman delivers a compelling story of the love of art, and the art of love."--Meg Waite Clayton, author of the national bestseller The Wednesday Sisters

"Tracy Guzeman's The Gravity of Birds is part mystery, part psychological drama and intriguing love story. This is a stunning debut. It's a brilliant tale, written in evocative language, and every page is pure seduction. I want to scream from the rooftops: read this book!"--Ellen Sussman "author of the New York Times bestseller French Lessons "

From the Back Cover:

Sisters Alice and Natalie were once close, but adolescence has wrenched them apart. Alice loves books and birds in equal measure, and spends her summer holidays frowning into volumes of poetry, with an ear out for unusual birdcalls. If Alice is the clever one, her older sister, Natalie, is the beautiful one. Sexy and manipulative, she captivates men everywhere.

On their lakeside family holiday, Alice falls under the thrall of the supremely talented, enigmatic next-door-neighbour, a struggling young painter. Thomas seems wild and dangerous; her parents disapprove of him but to Alice, he is gentle, wise and kind – really listening to her hopes and dreams in a way that no-one has ever done before.

Natalie remains aloof, and seems strangely unmoved by the charismatic stranger in their midst. She tolerates the family sittings for the portrait Thomas is paining of them all with a barely disguised distaste. But as the family portrait – a moment frozen in time – nears completion, the family dynamics shift irrevocably. And by the end of the summer, three lives are shattered.

A haunting debut of love in all its forms, The Gravity of Birds perfectly captures the devastating consequences betrayal can have through the decades, echoing right through to the present day.

About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1451689772
• ISBN 13: 9781451689778
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320