Review: Birdie by Tracey Lindberg

Title: Birdie

Author: Tracey Lindberg

Publisher: HarperCollins

Publication Date: May 26, 2015

ISBN: 9781554682942

Synopsis from Goodreads:
Birdie is a darkly comic and moving first novel about the universal experience of recovering from wounds of the past, informed by the lore and knowledge of Cree traditions. Bernice Meetoos, a Cree woman, leaves her home in Northern Alberta following tragedy and travels to Gibsons, BC. She is on something of a vision quest, seeking to understand the messages from The Frugal Gourmet (one of the only television shows available on CBC North) that come to her in her dreams. She is also driven by the leftover teenaged desire to meet Pat Johns, who played Jesse on The Beachcombers, because he is, as she says, a working, healthy Indian man. Bernice heads for Molly’s Reach to find answers but they are not the ones she expected. With the arrival in Gibsons of her Auntie Val and her cousin Skinny Freda, Bernice finds the strength to face the past and draw the lessons from her dreams that she was never fully taught in life. Part road trip, dream quest and travelogue, the novel touches on the universality of women’s experience, regardless of culture or race.

This book came to my knowledge when it was featured as one of the finalists for CBC’s Canada Reads. I’m always inclined to check out these books because it’s so wonderful to discover new and established Canadian talent. Plus, it’s been compares to Robinson’s Monkey Beach which is one of my most beloved books. I love when Canadians highlight their own, because so often in the book industry, Canadian books are overtaken by bestselling international authors. I couldn’t not pick this book up.

Tracey Lindberg’s Birdie is such a visceral book. It’s a book that encourages the reader to connect through feeling and intuition. It is often disjointed, reflecting the broken life of Birdie/Bernice. Abandonment, abuse, rape, and shame have been a prominent part of Birdie’s upbringing and young adult life. We piece together her story, learning through Birdie’s eyes as she reaches her breaking point. Her story is powerful and moving. She has struggled and she comes so close to failure, to death. Her story is full of her spirit and life. Birdie is a character that the reader comes to love as you turn each page. She is incredibly strong. She refuses again and again to be beaten down, but even she is not immune to the terrible outcomes of a lifetime of abuse and struggle. I love Birdie because even in her darkest hour, she is able to gather her courage and to find a bright light. We learn of her life as she confronts her past. As we read, Birdie heals, drawing on the spirit of her ancestors and family.

Has any one else ready this book? What are your thoughts?