All the Birds in the Sky

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I liked how All the Birds in the Skysurprised me…It was well worth my anticipation, and the sort of book that I think I can read numerous times and interpret it different each time. Anders is an incredibly clever writer, and her book is so incredibly human and genre bending at the same time, I couldn’t help but be amazed.” — Bookworm Blues The book was translated into German by Sophie Zeitz and published in Germany as Alle Vögel unter dem Himmel by Fischer Tor in April 2017. [20] Sequels [ edit ] Anders approaches her characters with intense sentiment, whether that be love or fear, but without ever becoming sentimental. I got the sense that she really enjoyed writing these characters, as she pushed them through trial after trial (social, professional, and mystical), and that in turn made me love her characters. All the Birds in the Sky is, above all else, a character-driven drama about ties that bind.

Locus Awards 2017". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus Science Fiction Foundation . Retrieved June 25, 2017. Uh,” Patricia said. “Can you give me a hint? Umm. Is that ‘red’ like the color?” The birds didn’t answer. “Can you give me more time? I promise I’ll answer, I just need more time to think. Please. I need more time. Please?” All the Birds in the Skyis a love story that melds Gaiman-esque magic with Gibson’s near-future angst.” — Scott SiglerOkay. So you could just put me up in a tree and hope for the best, but I’ll probably get eaten or starve to death.” His head bobbed. “Or… I mean. There is one thing.” Anders’ humor elevates this marvelous book above the morass of dystopian novels that have flooded the literary landscape. So does her ability to portray a realistic yet original vision of the near-future, especially in her depiction of the Caddy, a smartphone-like device that relies on serendipity (and which, one hopes, will soon be available in various colors). The result feels like one of William Gibson‘s baroquely complex worlds, aerated by lighter-than-air dialogue and an engaging, diverse cast of supporting characters you’d love to meet at your next end-of-the-world party. This is by far one of the best debut novels in the genre in years… A bright new author, destined to do well.” — Andrew Musk,Starburst Magazine The very short list of novels that dare to traffic as freely in the uncanny and wondrous as in big ideas—I think of masterpieces like The Lathe of Heaven; Cloud Atlas; Little, Big—has just been extended by one."—Michael Chabon

a b Liang, Adrian (January 27, 2016). " 'Witch Vs. Mad Scientist': Charlie Jane Anders on Her Novel All the Birds in the Sky". Omnivoracious.com . Retrieved April 6, 2017. Besides, jumping forward in time just underscored the basic problem: Laurence had nothing to look forward to. Imagine that Diana Wynne Jones, Douglas Coupland and Neil Gaiman walk into a bar and through some weird fusion of magic and science have a baby. That offspring is Charlie Jane Anders’ lyrical debut novel All The Birds In The Sky… a brave, genre-bending debut that, as satisfying as it is, perhaps hints at even more greatness to come.” — David Barnett, The Independent opens in a new window opens in a new window opens in a new window opens in a new window opens in a new window opens in a new windowIt’s fantastic when someone who is so important in the scifi world can flat-out write as well as critique and analyze.” —Scott Sigler, New York Times bestselling author of Alive Anyone suffering from midwinter blues should read Charlie Jane Anders’s between-categories fantasy, “All the Birds in the Sky.” The scenario is (almost) Harry Potter, the tone is (quite like) Kurt Vonnegut, the effect is entirely original… Charlie Anders is a new voice, witty, charming, thoughtful and sometimes mordant.“ — Tom Shippey, Wall Street Journal An entertaining and audacious melding of science, magic, and just plain real life that feels perfectly right for our time.” — BuzzFeed, “5 Great Books to Read in February”

Like Gibson, Anders weaves a thrilling, seat-of-the-pants narrative with a compelling subtext. Through Laurence and Patricia, she explores the tension between those who would exploit our world’s increasingly limited natural resources to save humanity and those who believe that humanity isn’t just part of the problem, it is the problem. The final showdown between Science and Magic lends to a satisfying cliffhanger ending that feels, despite being a clear setup for a second novel, genuinely earned.Laurence is an engineering genius who's working with a group that aims to avert catastrophic breakdown through technological intervention into the changing global climate. Patricia is a graduate of Eltisley Maze, the hidden academy for the world's magically gifted, and works with a small band of other magicians to secretly repair the world's ever-growing ailments. Little do they realize that something bigger than either of them, something begun years ago in their youth, is determined to bring them together - to either save the world or plunge it into a new dark ages. Tech culture’s strange relationship with nature takes centre stage in All the Birds in the Sky, a vivid, genre-blending novel from a writer who is clearly one to watch.” — Rowland Manthorpe, Wired Yeah.” Laurence cut into his dad’s flow before the conversation got away from him. “That’s right. Milton Dirth. And I really want to go see it. This is like a once-in-a-lifetime chance. I thought maybe we could make it a father-son thing.” His dad couldn’t turn down a father-son thing, or it would be like admitting to being a bad father. Highly readable and imaginative, All the Birds in the Sky will sing to Philip Pullman fans.” — Mail on Sunday WHEN PATRICIA WAS six years old, she found a wounded bird. The sparrow thrashed on top of a pile of wet red leaves in the crook of two roots, waving its crushed wing. Crying, in a pitch almost too high for Patricia to hear. She looked into the sparrow’s eye, enveloped by a dark stripe, and she saw its fear. Not just fear, but also misery—as if this bird knew it would die soon. Patricia still didn’t understand how the life could just go out of someone’s body forever, but she could tell this bird was fighting against death with everything it had.

No,” Patricia said. “I know where you live. I know your owner. If you are naughty, I will tell. I will tell on you.” She was kind of fibbing. She didn’t know who owned Tommington, but her mother might. And if Patricia came home covered with bites and scratches her mother would be mad. At her but also at Tommington’s owner. You did not want Patricia’s mom mad at you, because she got mad for a living and was really good at it. So how do I prove that I’m a witch?” Patricia wondered if she could run away. Birds flew pretty fast, right? She probably couldn’t get away from a whole lot of birds, if they were mad at her. Especially magical birds.Anders' first novel, Choir Boy, was published in 2005. Most of it was written in 2001, and she described it as "very weird literary" fiction. [5] After that she worked on several novels, including All the Birds in the Sky, but it was not until her science fiction novelette " Six Months, Three Days" won her a Hugo, that she realized what readers were after, and focused on All the Birds. In a 2016 interview in the science fiction book podcast Geek's Guide to the Galaxy, Anders said that, whereas the other books she was working on "felt like something that other people could have written", All the Birds "felt like something only I could have written." [5] She spent most of 2011 working on the book. [6] Tor Books acquired All the Birds in the Sky in March 2014, with publication planned for 2015. [1] Anders writes gorgeous, exciting prose, and the moral and narrative complexity she’s set up in All the Birds in the Skycarries all the way through its ambitious, heartbreaking, hopeful ending. This book has been tremendously well received, and will most likely earn itself a place on the shelf among all its venerable influencers as a new addition to the canon.” — Los Angeles Review of Books