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WORK TITLE: If Birds Fly Back
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: https://carliesorosiak.com/
CITY: London, England
STATE:
COUNTRY: United Kingdom
NATIONALITY: American
https://www.harpercollins.com/cr-125011/carlie-sorosiak
RESEARCHER NOTES:
| LC control no.: | no2017082233 |
|---|---|
| LCCN Permalink: | https://lccn.loc.gov/no2017082233 |
| HEADING: | Sorosiak, Carlie |
| 000 | 00598nz a2200157n 450 |
| 001 | 10486662 |
| 005 | 20170622073529.0 |
| 008 | 170621n| azannaabn |n aaa c |
| 010 | __ |a no2017082233 |
| 035 | __ |a (OCoLC)oca10863784 |
| 040 | __ |a TnLvILS |b eng |e rda |c TnLvILS |
| 100 | 1_ |a Sorosiak, Carlie |
| 370 | __ |a North Carolina |e United Kingdom |e United States |2 naf |
| 375 | __ |a female |
| 377 | __ |a eng |
| 670 | __ |a If birds fly back, ©2017: |b title page (Carlie Sorosiak) back jacket flap (Carlie Sorosiak grew up in North Carolina… She currently splits her time between the United States and the United Kingdom…) |
PERSONAL
Female.
EDUCATION:University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, bachelor’s degree; Oxford University, master’s degree (English); City University London, master’s degree (creative writing and publishing).
ADDRESS
CAREER
Novelist.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Carlie Sorosiak writes young adult fiction. She grew up in North Carolina, earned a bachelor’s degree from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, then went to England where she earned a master’s degree in English from Oxford University and another in creative writing and publishing from City University London. She splits her time between the United States and the United Kingdom. She writes about magical summer camps, missing people, and the inner life of dogs. Sorosiak developed her love of reading and writing during her itinerant childhood when her family moved fourteen times before she entered college, “so writing and books were things that I could hold onto when everything else was changing…I knew deep down that writing was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” she said on her Carly Sorosiak Website.
If Birds Fly Back
In 2017, Sorosiak published her debut novel for young adults, If Birds Fly Back. Set in Miami Beach, sixteen-year-old Linny has kept a journal ever since her eighteen-year-old sister Grace ran away from home in the middle of the night. Linny hopes that someday she can write a screenplay about her and Grace’s life. Her Nigerian mother and “Viking” father have put a lot of pressure on their remaining daughter Linny, encouraging her toward medical school when she graduates high school.
Meanwhile, seventeen-year-old Sebastian, an aspiring astrophysicist who wants to attend Cal Tech, is obsessed with learning who his birth father is. He has fixated on famous Cuban-born novelist and filmmaker Alvaro Herrera, who went missing three years ago but has reappeared in a nursing home in Miami. Sebastian immediately flies there from his home in Los Angeles hoping to meet him. Linny just so happens to also be a fan of Herrera’s work and is determined to learn where he had disappeared to. Perhaps being a missing person himself, he may have advice or clues as to what happened to Grace. With humor and romance, Linny and Sebastian meet at the nursing home and learn of their mutual interest in Herrera, go on errands together, and begin to fall in love.
Sorosiak uses alternating voices and interjects material from Linny’s writings. Alma Ramos-McDermott commented in the Horn Book Magazine: “Though tedious at times, these alternate forms of expression help flesh out the protagonists.” Sorosiak “crowds the dual narration with occasionally distracting excerpts from Linny’s journal, a work-in-progress screenplay about Grace, and quotes from Sebastian’s favorite physics book,” according to a Kirkus Reviews contributor, who added that the overlong debut has a familiar feeling, yet will please fans of Morgan Matson, John Green, and Rainbow Rowell.
In an interview online at My Kinda Book, Sorosiak explained the theme of the book: “It’s about looking for something else and finding love instead. There’s grief and astrophysics and kissing, and lots of Miami heat.” Acknowledging the physics-tinged musings of Sebastian and calling If Birds Fly Back a brainy romance, Booklist reviewer Sarah Hunter said: “Sorosiak’s debut tells a sweet love story with plenty of emotional heft.” In School Librarian, reviewer Sammie Steward described the book as part romance and part mystery that is appropriate for readers age thirteen and over. Steward added: “The author manages to explore themes of family, reconnection, loss and identity with a light touch.” Although the material is not boundary pushing, it nevertheless presents a sensitive and uplifting story, said Steward. The book is a choice for readers who like realistic teen fiction, and “While the plot’s central mysteries are perhaps too easily resolved, it’s really the story of two sweet and likable teens,” according to Della Farrell in School Library Journal.
Wild Blue Wonder
In 2018, Sorosiak followed up If Birds Fly Back with Wild Blue Wonder set in a summer camp in Winship, Maine. High school junior Quinn finds camp a magical place where she can be with her best friend Dylan. There’s even a legend about a sea monster that lives in the water. When Dylan dies in a tragic boating accident, Quinn must deal with her grief, her lost passion for camp, and her desire to be a competitive swimmer. With support from her family and friends, she rebuilds her life, finds interest in new boy Alexander, and relies on her love of science.
In School Library Journal, Margaret A. Robbins called the book “A great work of realistic fiction with a romantic twist that will appeal to fans of YA for older teens.” Wild Blue Wonder “is a striking examination of love—of friends, of family, of self—as well as of grief. Quinn is a quietly compelling narrator,” according to Booklist reviewer Maggie Reagan. Then-and-now chapters move the story forward, mystery is built up, and touches of magical realism add a rich layer to the story, noted Reagan.
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, May 1, 2017, Sarah Hunter, review of If Birds Fly Back, p. 70.
Horn Book Magazine, May-June 2017, Alma Ramos-McDermott, review of If Birds Fly Back, p. 103.
Kirkus Reviews, April 1, 2017, review of If Birds Fly Back.
School Librarian, Autumn 2017, Sammie Steward, review of If Birds Fly Back, p. 187.
School Library Journal, May 2017, Della Farrell, review of If Birds Fly Back, p. 107; March 2018, Margaret A. Robbins, review of Wild Blue Wonder, p. 123.
ONLINE
Booklist, https://www.booklistonline.com/ (March 1, 2018), Maggie Reagan, review of Wild Blue Wonder.
Carlie Sorosiak Website, https://carliesorosiak.com (April 1, 2018), author profile.
My Kinda Book, http://www.mykindabook.com/ (July 22, 2017), author interview.
About
Carlie S 3.JPGHi! I’m Carlie, and I write books about magical summer camps, missing people, and the inner life of dogs.
Although I grew up in North Carolina, I split my time between the UK and the US, hoping to gain an accent like Madonna’s. I have two polydactyl cats (Google it!) who are my writing companions, but I don’t let them type on my keyboard. Somewhere in my parents’ attic are all three of my degree certificates: one from UNC-Chapel Hill, one from Oxford, and another from City, University of London.
You can find me on Twitter at @carliesorosiak and as carliesorosiak on Instagram.
Some things I like:
Gluten-free desserts
Indie bookstores
Old bookstores
Really just any bookstore
Dogs
Anything that Morgan Freeman narrates
Museum days in London
For more info, see my list of Frequently Asked Questions.
How do you pronounce your last name?
It sounds like: Soar-ROSE-ee-ak, and it’s Polish!
Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Write as much as you can. Write what you want to read. Just: write, write, write. You don’t need permission from anyone else to do what you love. Take advice from people you trust, and everyone else’s advice with a bucket of salt.
I also offer a lot of advice on the query process here.
14484809_10155350980969741_6011282226380454579_n.jpg
Fan art by the lovely Emily Bain Murphy.
What’s your writing process?
I talk a lot about it here.
How did you find your agent?
It’s a rather unhelpful story, I’m afraid, but I met her while I was working at a publishing house. She in came with one of her clients, and I queried her a few months later. Do see my advice on the query process!
Are you available to speak at this event/visit my school/do an interview?
Possibly! Please use my contact form or get in touch on Twitter. 🙂
sh_o4vf6So, If Birds Fly Back is your first novel, right?
Yes and no. I wrote my first full-length novel between the ages of nine and thirteen. While The Lady of the Tree was short on things like plot, character development and an original title, it was strong in enthusiasm. I knew deep down that writing was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. My family moved a lot—fourteen times before I reached university—so writing and books were things that I could hold onto when everything else was changing. To gain entry to my grad program in creative writing, I also began an adult dystopian novel called The Professor’s Wife. It was pretty terrible as well.
Did you major in English at university?
Not at first. Because I was really skilled in science, my grandparents decided that I would become a neurologist. (They saw me reading Oliver Sacks a lot, but didn’t understand that I liked the stories of science much better than the practical application.) So I applied to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to study biology with the plan of becoming a doctor. Then my beloved grandfather had a heart attack. I spoke with his attending neurologist, who said that ninety-nine percent of his patients were already brain-dead, and it was his responsibility to crush the hope of families. I dropped biology the next day.
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My parents came all the way to England to watch me graduate from Oxford.
But it wasn’t until my junior year at UNC that I transitioned to English. I was reading Fahrenheit 451 at the recommendation of Rory Gilmore, and I remember thinking: I love this. Why would I want to study anything besides literature? I spent the next semester reading American literature at Kings College London, and by the time I returned home, I had a plan to apply for a graduate program in English at Oxford, which was close enough to Hogwarts to excite me.
Who are your favorite writers?
I could go on forever about the authors who inspire me, but for the sake of brevity, here’s a condensed list: Jandy Nelson, John Green, Rainbow Rowell, Sarah Dessen, Stephanie Perkins, E. Lockhart, Katherine Applegate, R.J. Palacio, J.K. Rowling, Meg Cabot, Louise Rennison, and on the adult side of things: Jojo Moyes, Robin Sloan, Maria Semple, Helen Fielding, Kathryn Stockett, Sara Gruen, Donna Tartt, Mark Haddon, Kazuo Ishiguro, David Nicholls, Jess Walter, Ian McEwan, Elizabeth Gilbert… Okay, cutting it off here.
Where do you get your ideas?
230098_6297919740_1833_n.jpg
Sixteen-year-old me, going to prom.
Anywhere and everywhere. For my Wild Blue Wonder, it started with the setting.
I also had the very fortunate (and sometimes unfortunate) experience of being a teenager, and those memories really are an endless resource for YA novel.
I, Cosmo was inspired by my complete love of dogs. As an only child, I grew up with dogs; they were my siblings, my best friends.
What’s next for you?
My second YA novel, Wild Blue Wonder, comes out June 2018, and my first MG novel, I, Cosmo, publishes in 2019.
Biography
Carlie Sorosiak is the author of If Birds Fly Back and Wild Blue Yonder. She grew up in North Carolina and holds two master’s degrees: one in English from Oxford University and another in creative writing and publishing from City University London. Her life goals include traveling to all seven continents and fostering many polydactyl cats. She currently splits her time between the United States and the United Kingdom, hoping to gain an accent like Madonna’s. Visit her online at www.carliesorosiak.com.
Sorosiak, Carlie. If Birds Fly Back
Alicia Abdul
Voice of Youth Advocates.
40.2 (June 2017): p71+. From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2017 E L Kurdyla Publishing LLC http://www.voya.com
Full Text:
2Q * 3P * S
Sorosiak, Carlie. If Birds Fly Back. HarperTeen, 2017. 448p. $17.99. 978-0-06256396-5.
In this debut novel, Linny is keeping a journal of famous disappearances after her older eighteen- year-old sister disappears, while Sebastian, who wants to be an astrophysicist, yearns to know the identity of his birth father. His mother continues to actively misinform Sebastian as a measure of protection. Linny and Sebastians worlds collide when Linny, volunteering at the Silver Springs Retirement Community in Florida, spots Alvaro Herrera, a novelist and filmmaker who vanished years ago at the height of his fame. Linny recognizes him, though aged, while Sebastian has enough clues to seek Herrera out. A romance blossoms between the teens when they find a connection in their mutual unanswered questions.
Following the trend of dually-narrated stories, Sorosiak's story features an intimate look at Linny and Sebastian's unsettled lives. Many of Linny's chapters begin with a case of a missing person and feature formatted scenes from Linny's movie-version of her interactions. Sebastian's chapters always begin with a quote from an astrophysics text and some observations amidst his narrative. It works, but the bloated additions add unnecessary length to the character-driven quest. The resolution provides hopeful closure, making this a welcome standalone novel focused as much on family as it is on love.--Alicia Abdul.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Abdul, Alicia. "Sorosiak, Carlie. If Birds Fly Back." Voice of Youth Advocates, June 2017, p. 71+.
Book Review Index Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A497860353 /GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS&xid=2883647c. Accessed 21 Mar. 2018.
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Sorosiak, Carlie: IF BIRDS FLY BACK
Kirkus Reviews.
(Apr. 1, 2017): From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Sorosiak, Carlie IF BIRDS FLY BACK HarperTeen (Children's Fiction) $17.99 6, 27 ISBN: 978-0-06-256396-5
While both are volunteering at a Miami Beach retirement home, an aspiring astrophysicist and a young filmmaker befriend a famous octogenarian who's presumed dead. Ever since Linny's 18- year-old older sister, Grace, disappeared five months earlier, leaving nothing but a note to take care of her pet turtle, Linny has kept a journal about missing people who've reappeared after weeks, months, and years. Mixed-race Linny's Nigerian mother and "Viking" father fearfully keep a close watch on their remaining daughter and try to keep her focused on their goals of Princeton and med school. The summer before senior year, Linny is performing community service at a retirement community, where she spies 83-year-old Alvaro Herrera, the Cuban-born author of Midnight in Miami, a bestselling book adapted into a cult-movie classic. No one had seen or heard of Herrera in three years, and Linny believes if she discovers why he returned, Grace may as well. Cal Tech-bound science wiz Sebastian finds out that Alvaro is his long-lost father and immediately flies down to Miami to volunteer at the home in hopes of meeting his dad. Linny and Sebastian meet, adventure amiably around Miami on errands for Alvaro, and, predictably, fall in love. The author crowds the dual narration with occasionally distracting excerpts from Linny's journal, a work-in-progress screenplay about Grace, and quotes from Sebastian's favorite physics book. This familiar-feeling if slightly overlong debut should resonate with fans of Morgan Matson, John Green, and Rainbow Rowell. (Fiction. 13-18)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Sorosiak, Carlie: IF BIRDS FLY BACK." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Apr. 2017. Book Review Index
Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A487668515/GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS& xid=f94a62c4. Accessed 21 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A487668515
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If Birds Fly Back
Alma Ramos-Mcdermott
The Horn Book Magazine.
93.3 (May-June 2017): p103. From Book Review Index Plus.
COPYRIGHT 2017 The Horn Book, Inc.. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Sources, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.hbook.com/magazine/default.asp
Full Text:
If Birds Fly Back
by Carlie Sorosiak
High School HarperTeen 433 pp. g 6/17 978-0-06-256396-5 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-0-06-256398-9 $9.99
Sixteen-year-old Linny (in Miami) and seventeen-year-old Sebastian (in Los Angeles) have both experienced loss. Grace, Linny's older sister and best friend, ran away from home, leaving grief- stricken Linny to wonder if she'd ever return. Sebastian, who grew up without a father, is trying to piece together clues about the man's identity.
The two teens and their stories meet when Alvaro Herrera, a reclusive writer (beloved by both teens) who'd been missing for three years, shows up at a nursing home near Linny's house. Obsessed with the thought that Alvaro's reappearance could mean the same for Grace, Linny volunteers to work at the nursing home to get closer to him. Meanwhile, Sebastian has learned surprising news about Alvaro's connection to his family and flies to Miami to confront him. Sorosiak uses alternating voices, interspersed with Linny's original screenplays and journal entries as well as select chapters from Sebastian's favorite book of astrophysics, to tell their stories. Though tedious at times, these alternate forms of expression help flesh out the protagonists as Linny and Sebastian find their way through joy, sorrow, and personal heartaches to a more optimistic future. ALMA RAMOS=MCDERMOTT
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Ramos-Mcdermott, Alma. "If Birds Fly Back." The Horn Book Magazine, May-June 2017, p.
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103. Book Review Index Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A492995629 /GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS&xid=a08c8212. Accessed 21 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A492995629
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If Birds Fly Back
Sarah Hunter
Booklist.
113.17 (May 1, 2017): p70. From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2017 American Library Association http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Full Text:
If Birds Fly Back. By Carlie Sorosiak. June 2017.448p. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780062563965). Gr. 9-12.
Linny and Sebastian have different reasons for getting to know Alvaro Herrera, a Miami author who just reappeared after being missing for three years. Linny wants some insight into what makes a runaway come back, in the hopes that it will help her track down her missing sister. Sebastian, meanwhile, just found out Alvaro is his father. While getting to know Alvaro, Linny and Sebastian get to know each other, too. Linny shares her love of filmmaking, which is utterly at odds with her parents' tightly held vision of her future, and Sebastian lets her in to his obsession with astrophysics. It shouldn't come as a surprise that they fall in love, though when Alvaros health takes a turn for the worse, both Linny's and Sebastian's abandonment issues rear their ugly heads. Sorosiak's debut tells a sweet love story with plenty of emotional heft, rendered primarily in snippets of Linny's screenplay about her sister, and Sebastian's physics-tinged musings about the nature of the universe and relationships. Fans of brainy romance will likely like this one.--Sarah Hunter
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Hunter, Sarah. "If Birds Fly Back." Booklist, 1 May 2017, p. 70. Book Review Index Plus,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A495035131/GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS& xid=c1e5d0a7. Accessed 21 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A495035131
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SOROSIAK, Carlie. Wild Blue
Wonder
Margaret A. Robbins
School Library Journal.
64.3 (Mar. 2018): p123. From Book Review Index Plus.
COPYRIGHT 2018 Library Journals, LLC. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
Full Text:
SOROSIAK, Carlie. Wild Blue Wonder. 368p. HarperCollins/HarperTeen. Jun. 2018. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9780062563996.
Gr 9 Up--Quinn's family camp in Maine has always been a magical place to connect with others. But the summer before her senior year of high school, a tragic boating accident occurs. When the water overcomes human physical strength, Quinn loses her best male friend Dylan, the desire to be. a competitive swimmer, and her passion for camp all at once. She goes through life in a daze of grief. Through a combination of time, support from family and friends, the process of rebuilding a boat, a spark for the new boy in town named Alexander, and her love of science, Quinn finds herself again. The setting of the small town Winship, ME, is eloquently described, and the family's camp comes to vivid life as a character in its own right. Adolescents will relate to Quinn's coming of age and also her ability to let go of the past. As she learns to trust herself again, her friendship with Alexander gradually grows into romance. Her relationships with her grandmother Nana and her best friend Hana are well developed and show how important close friends and mentors can be to young people. VERDICT A great work of realistic fiction with a romantic twist that will appeal to fans of YA for older teens.--Margaret A. Robbins, University of Georgia, Athens
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Robbins, Margaret A. "SOROSIAK, Carlie. Wild Blue Wonder." School Library Journal, Mar.
2018, p. 123. Book Review Index Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A529863638 /GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS&xid=f7cad314. Accessed 21 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A529863638
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Sorosiak, Carlie: If Birds Fly Back
Sammie Steward
School Librarian.
65.3 (Autumn 2017): p187. From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2017 The School Library Association http://www.sla.org.uk/school-librarian.php
Full Text:
Sorosiak, Carlie
If Birds Fly Back
Macmillan, 2017, pp352, 7.99 [pounds sterling] 978 1 5098 3586 7
A touching debut suitable for readers aged 13 and above, If Birds Fly Back is a coming of age book set against the backdrop of one magical Miami summer. The story is told from the dual perspectives of film buff Linny and physics mad Sebastian, whose worlds collide when Linny's sister Grace disappears around the same time that cult movie star Alvaro Herrera reappears in an old people's home long after being presumed dead.
Sebastian and Linny are easy to like, and Sorosiak does a good job of giving each of them a unique voice. Sebastian's chapters start with a quote from his favourite physics book, whilst each of Linny's chapters begin with a snippet of her screenplay about the disappearance of her sister, both of which really helped to lift the characters off of the page and give the reader a deeper insight into each of their personalities.
Part romance and part mystery, the author manages to explore themes of family, reconnection, loss and identity with a light touch. Whilst not boundary pushing, Birds is a sensitive and uplifting story that will no doubt appeal to fans of Jennifer Niven and Sarah Dessen.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Steward, Sammie. "Sorosiak, Carlie: If Birds Fly Back." School Librarian, Autumn 2017, p. 187.
Book Review Index Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A506957506 /GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS&xid=a538e8f0. Accessed 21 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A506957506
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Sorosiak, Carlie: If Birds Fly Back
Alma Ramos-McDermott
The Horn Book Guide.
28.2 (Fall 2017): p146. From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2017 The Horn Book, Inc. http://www.hornbookguide.com
Full Text:
* Sorosiak, Carlie If Birds Fly Back
433 pp. HarperTeen ISBN 978-0-06-256396-5 $17.99 EBOOK ISBN 978-0-06-256398-9
(2) Linny (in Miami) and Sebastian (in Los Angeles), who've both experienced loss, meet when reclusive, and beloved, writer Alvaro Herrera shows up at a nursing home near Linny's house. Sebastian has learned surprising news about Alvaro's connection to his family and flies to Miami to confront him. Sorosiak uses alternating voices to help flesh out the protagonists as they find their way to a more optimistic future. Review 5/17.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Ramos-McDermott, Alma. "Sorosiak, Carlie: If Birds Fly Back." The Horn Book Guide, Fall
2017, p. 146. Book Review Index Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A511524259 /GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS&xid=da3e8d85. Accessed 21 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A511524259
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Sorosiak, Carlie. If Birds Fly Back
Della Farrell
School Library Journal.
63.5 (May 2017): p107. From Book Review Index Plus.
COPYRIGHT 2017 Library Journals, LLC. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
Full Text:
SOROSIAK, Carlie. If Birds Fly Back. 448p. HarperCollins/Harper Teen. Jun. 2017. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9780062563965.
Gr 9 Up--In this charming novel about love and missing persons, two quirky teenagers embark on personal quests but end up finding each other. Linny, whose older sister Grace slipped out one night and disappeared, spends her days chronicling famous cases of people who vanished and then came back. When she starts a summer volunteer job at a retirement community, Linny spots a well-known writer who famously disappeared three years ago and was presumed dead. Seventeen-year-old Sebastian, who's about to head to Caltech, detours to Miami Beach when he hears that the father he's never known may be there. As it turns out, Linny's writer and Sebastian's father are the same man, the enigmatic Alvaro Herrera. Linny and Sebastian bond over the respective holes in their lives, all the while pursuing Alvaro for his secrets. The romance between the two bright, mildly troubled main characters--told from both points of view, in alternating chapters--will hook fans of John Green, Sarah Dessen, and Jenny Han. Interspersed throughout, and sometimes too distracting, are details about Linny's missing persons, scenes from the screenplay she's writing about her sister, and Sebastian's thoughts on physics and philosophy. While the plot's central mysteries are perhaps too easily resolved, it's really the story of two sweet and likable teens finding love that makes this novel so appealing. VERDICT Purchase where YA romance and realistic fiction are popular -Miranda Doyle, Lake Oswego School District, OR
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Farrell, Della. "Sorosiak, Carlie. If Birds Fly Back." School Library Journal, May 2017, p. 107.
Book Review Index Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A491032179 /GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS&xid=4819dc51. Accessed 21 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A491032179
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Booklist Editors Recommend
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Wild Blue Wonder.
Sorosiak, Carlie (author).
June 2018. 368p. HarperTeen, hardcover, $17.99 (9780062563996). Grades 9-12.
REVIEW. First published March 1, 2018 (Booklist).
Legend has it that a sea monster lives in the waters of Winship, Maine, and on the worst day of her life, Quinn Sawyer saw it. Quinn’s childhood was, in a word, idyllic: she spent summers at the Hundreds, her family’s summer camp, alongside her siblings, Reed and Fern, and with Dylan, the boy who was special to them all. But that was before. It’s winter now and Winship is almost as quiet as the Sawyer household—Quinn and her siblings, once close, now barely speak, and Quinn, who doesn’t believe in the magic of the Hundreds anymore, thinks she is just as monstrous as the sea monster she once thought she saw. When Alexander, a rare new boy, moves to Winship, Quinn befriends him, and slowly she begins to emerge from the isolation she’s imposed on herself since summer. Sorosiak’s sophomore novel (If Birds Fly Back, 2017) is a striking examination of love—of friends, of family, of self—as well as of grief. Quinn is a quietly compelling narrator, and touches of magical realism add a rich, atmospheric layer to her story. Then-and-now chapters keep the pace moving forward and add a hint of mystery, but ultimately this is a soft and lovely exploration of how life can freeze at the point of tragedy, and of a girl who learns to thaw.
— Maggie Reagan
Find more titles by Carlie Sorosiak
Books For Youth - Fiction - General Fiction
If Birds Fly Back
by Carlie Sorosiak
[Buy this book at IndieBound]
[Buy this book at Amazon]
[Buy this book at Barnes and Noble]
In her debut novel IF BIRDS FLY BACK, Carlie Sorosiak weaves seamlessly weaves a dual perspective narrative about family and the empty spaces they can leave behind.
Ever since her older sister, Grace, left in the middle of the night, leaving behind only instructions on how to care for her pet turtle, Linny has become obsessed with missing people who reappear, and keeps a running list of them in a book.
"Sorosiak’s writing is filled with heart, and both Sebastian’s and Linny’s voices are different enough to make the dual perspective highly enjoyable. "
She’s volunteering at Silver Springs, a senior living facility near her home in Miami, mostly because her parents say it will look good on her transcript and help her get into an Ivy League college, and then into medical school. It seems like it’s going to be a pretty uneventful summer. Until she spots Alvaro Herrera, the famous writer and filmmaker, who disappeared three years ago and was presumed dead.
Sebastian is a Cal-Tech bound science prodigy and an aspiring astrophysicist, whose mother tells him that his father has just reappeared. In Miami. Desperate to meet the father he’s never known, Sebastian buys a one way ticket to Miami and signs up to volunteer at Silver Springs.
As both Linny and Sebastian get pulled into the mystery of Alvaro’s disappearance, they grow closer, and might just be able to find the answers they are looking for.
Sorosiak’s writing is filled with heart, and both Sebastian’s and Linny’s voices are different enough to make the dual perspective highly enjoyable. While the romance between Sebastian and Linny felt more than a little forced, their interactions with and around Alvaro are sweet and are enough to keep the reader engaged over all. The cast of characters surrounding them, Cass, Ray and Micah being the most notable, add great bits of comic relief into a novel that would otherwise be very emotionally heavy.
Fans of Rainbow Rowell and Sara Dessen will enjoy Sorosiak’s ability to create compelling characters in heart wrenching situations.
Reviewed by Alyssa Cami on July 7, 2017
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If Birds Fly Back
by Carlie Sorosiak
Publication Date: June 27, 2017
Genres: Family Life, Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Young Adult 14+
Hardcover: 448 pages
Publisher: HarperTeen
ISBN-10: 0062563963
ISBN-13: 9780062563965
If Birds Fly Back Q&A with Carlie Sorosiak
Today on the blog, we've asked Carlie Sorosiak our most burning questions about If Birds Fly Back - her heart-warming debut novel. See below for everything from writing snacks to music to Halloween!
What can you tell the readers of MKB about If Birds Fly Back?
I can tell you that it’s about looking for something else and finding love instead. There’s grief and astrophysics and kissing, and lots of Miami heat.
What was your favorite scene to write?
It’s probably a tie between the ball pit scene (absolutely love that!), and the Halloween party in the middle of the July. I am so obsessed with Halloween that I found a way to work it into the summer. Sneaky, sneaky.
What’s your must-have writing snack?
I never used to eat them before moving to the UK, but I’m now a big cheesy oatcake fan. If I’m frustrated with a scene, of course I must have chocolate. And there’s always tea.
Where did you write If Birds Fly Back?
So many places. My little flat in Camden, my parents’ home in North Carolina, in the library at City, University of London, and – perhaps most notably – upstairs in Whole Foods Kensington. I consumed so much organic guacamole, I’m not sure that I can even admit the amount out loud.
Do you listen to music when you write? If so, what?
Absolutely! Music is incredibly important to my drafting process. I need something that sets the exact right mood for the narrative. See my If Birds Fly Back playlist!
If you could give readers one piece of writing advice, what would it be?
Take writing advice from people you trust, and everyone else’s advice with a bucket of salt.
Thanks Carlie! Have you read If Birds Fly Back? Let us know what you think at @mykindabook!
f Birds Fly Back by Carlie Sorosiak (from a Two Thumbs Up reviewer)
by McNally Robinson - Sunday, May 28, 2017 at 12:17pm
$21.99 Add to Cart
"Remember to keep your head up in the sky; otherwise, you’ll miss the stars."
Reading If Birds Fly Back is like having a breeze dancing off your cheeks while the ocean waves gently crashing into your heart. It is not outstanding in comparison to others in its genre by any means, but it is a refreshing and perfect summer read.
I specifically enjoyed how the author handles Linny and Sebastian's duel POVs. Linny is an aspiring film director whose sister ran away, while Sebastian is an astrophysics nerd whose dad's identity is unknown. Circumstances bring them together at Silver Spring, a senior home, which happens to have answers for them both. The reader feels Linny's insecurity and grief through her voice, and Sebastian's uncertainty and awkwardness are wonderfully embedded in his character as well. Although the POVs alternate between both protagonists, they are done seamlessly. The author just knows when to let her characters speak. Oh, and I absolutely adore the fact that Linny's POV has a script in it (beautifully written) and Sebastian's is totally flooded with physics quotes and equations (they are more interesting than boring, I promised!).
A clear set back for me was Linny and Sebastian's somewhat instant attraction. Their relationship was my favourite kind, awkward and cute, but unfortunately this "love at first sight trope" makes me less invested in them being together. Granted, it is more like both of them crushing on each other at the same time, but something like that simply bothers me. Sebastian also keeps repeating that he finds Linny hot, which annoyed me after a while. However, the mysteries and the relationship between our protagonists and other people around them were what keep the plot entertaining for me.
Overall, If Birds Fly Back is a 3.5/5 stars read for me. It is certainly less eventful, and may come off as dull or daunting, but keep to it if you are still feeling intrigued because you will be rewarded with so many wonderful feelings by the end.
- Phuong, a Two Thumbs Up reviewer
If Birds Fly Back will be available June 27.
Categories: Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Two Thumbs Up
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