Each Little Bird That Sings

Deborah Wiles

4.11

7,682 ratings by Goodreads

9780756970291: Each Little Bird That Sings

ISBN 10: 0756970296 ISBN 13: 9780756970291

Publisher: Turtleback Books, 2006

Ten-year-old Comfort Snowberger has attended 247 funerals--her family owns the local funeral home, after all. And even though Great-uncle Edisto keeled over with a heart attack and Great-great-aunt Florentine dropped dead--just like that--six months later, Comfort knows how to deal with loss, or so she thinks. She's more concerned with avoiding her crazy cousin Peach and trying to figure out why her best friend, Declaration, suddenly won't talk to her. But life is full of surprises. And the biggest one of all is learning what it takes to handle them.
In this heartfelt and quintessentially Southern coming-of-age novel, Comfort will charm young readers with her wit, her warmth, and her struggles as she learns about life, loss, and ultimately, triumph. "I""ncludes reader's guide and a biography of the author."

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Review:

Death is a way of life for the Snowberger family, since they run a funeral parlor out of their Mississippi home with the motto "We live to serve." Still, when 94-year-old Great-great-aunt Florentine Snowberger dies in the vegetable garden, no one can truly be prepared, even though she'd been bidding "good night and good-bye" to the family every night since she turned 90. Florentine's death is hard on 10-year-old Comfort, since the two were so close, even co-writing the Fantastic (and Fun) Funeral Food for Family and Friends. It's no surprise, then, when the annoyingly overwrought emotional displays of her young cousin Peach Shuggars and the sudden iciness of her alleged best friend Declaration Johnson send Comfort over the edge. Thank goodness for her shaggy "feel-good" dog Dismay who can eradicate all bad feelings with a single slobbery lick.

When a dangerous flash flood comes to Snapfinger on the day of Florentine's funeral, Comfort learns again that life is full of surprises, good and bad, and that, ultimately, it's just good to be alive. This warm, witty novel, told in Comfort's voice (and a mix of letters, recipes, articles, and helpful hints), celebrates the joys of family, of prune bread, of freshly sharpened pencils, and of "each little bird that sings." The fairly constant philosophizing about life and death, the unusual character names (Tidings, Comfort, Joy), and the narrator's oft-precocious voice may fray a nerve or two, but readers will find more than enough humor and good old-fashioned storytelling here to make up for it. (Ages 8 to 12) --Karin Snelson

About the Author:

DEBORAH WILES is a first-time novelist. She has worked as a journalist and a radio commentator, and she teaches writing and oral history workshops for children. She lives in Maryland.

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