The Language of Seabirds

Twelve-year-old Jeremy lives in Oregon but doesn't remember ever having visited the coast. Sadly, he is able to go when his parents finally get divorced after years of bickering. He and his father spend two weeks in an uncle's rental house while his mother cleans out and moves to another town for a better job. At some point, Jeremy will have to decide which parent he will live with, but for now he is stuck with his busy, college professor father who keeps springing new, unusual rules on Jeremy, and his bro-tastic uncle. Jeremy is uncomfortable with the way the two men treat him, especially when they talk about how he must be interested in girls; Jeremy is pretty sure his romantic interest are with guys, but he doesn't want to tell his parents. His father wouldn't understand, and his overportective mother would make his sexual identity into a project. When Jeremy sees an attractive boy running on the beach and later meets him in town at his grandmother's tourist shop, he doesn't know wuite what to make of Evan. The two arrange to go on a run, even though Jeremy has never run a mile in his life. He does, however, take money his mother gave him, get on a bus to go to Target, and buy running gear, and makes a good effort to keep up with cross country athlete Evan, even though his lack of experience is revealed when he throws up! The two boys become friends, and share an interest in the local seabirds. They have copies of the same bird identification book, and are soon connecting different birds to different experiences or emotions. Jeremy has to struggle with his father's spiraling despair and drinking, and when Jeremy and Evan go on a run before a big Fourth of July party but get caught by the tide on a ledge, they finally discuss their feelings for each other. They are also both grounded. Evan has told his grandmother that he is gay, but Jeremy continues to hide this from his father, since so much else is going on. When his father's erratic behavior culminates in an embarassing display while he is taking the boys out to a local restaurant, Will has to decide how he will go forward in his relationship with both
his father and with Evan.

THE LANGUAGE OF SEABIRDS is a beautiful and poignant middle grade contemporary about being true to yourself and finding your way in the world. Jeremy is 12, and it feels like everything has been changing. He knows he likes boys, but he is not sure how his parents will react, especially when his dad has become so self-consumed and his mother likes to plan since the divorce. This summer, he has to make a decision about who he will live with in the aftermath, and his father has whisked him away for 2 weeks to the ocean, staying at one of his uncle's rental properties.

Once there, Jeremy knows everything feels different, not only because of the way his father is acting with making up new rules that he expects Jeremy to already know and the way he seems to be endlessly drinking, but also because he notices a boy running by and is afraid his father will notice him noticing. As he begins to stretch his freedom and travel around the beach town, he meets the boy, Evan, and together, they embark on something frightening, exciting, and new. This is the summer when Jeremy begins to figure out himself and how to stay true to himself amidst the turmoil of his life.

What I loved: This was such a beautiful and compelling read. Although this is a middle grade read with 12-year-old protagonists, the writing and the story is one that will appeal to YA audiences as well. The plight of Jeremy, not sure about coming out or how to make himself known, is one that will resonate with preteens and teens who are trying to figure out who they are and what they want from life. Themes around dealing with your parents' divorce, struggling with changing rules/boundaries, family, friendship, first relationships, standing up for yourself, and being true to who you are make this a really thought-provoking and pensive read.

Jeremy and Evan are both really fantastic characters. They are really perfect together, and the way that their friendship develops and later transitions into something different was really lovely. The title comes from one way that they connect by observing the birds on the beach and describing them more deeply with a special code. This was just beautiful.

What left me wanting more: I was a bit troubled by Jeremy's father's apparent alcoholism or at least alcohol abuse. There are not really resources given to Jeremy in the book, but it would be helpful to have information about resources in the backmatter and/or more in the story about how readers in similar situations can deal with this. While it was realistic, it was hard to see and know that Jeremy may end up choosing to live with him and deal with this throughout the year.

Final verdict: A stunning and riveting middle grade contemporary, THE LANGUAGE OF SEABIRDS is a poignant story about being true to yourself, family, and first love. Highly recommend picking this up for middle grade and YA readers and especially for fans of HURRICANE SEASON or A SONG FOR A WHALE.