Review | Nightbird

Nightbird by Alice Hoffman
March 2015 by Wendy Lamb Books
208 pages
Four stars



"An enchanting novel from bestselling author Alice Hoffman: a charmed New England village, a family secret, and a friendship destined to defeat a witch.

"Some things could only be found in Sidwell it seemed: pink apples, black owls, and my brother, James."

Twelve-year-old Twig's town in the Berkshires is said to hide a winged beast, the Monster of Sidwell, and the rumors draw as many tourists as the town's famed pink apple orchards. Twig lives in the orchard with her mysterious brother James and her reclusive mother, a baker of irresistible apple pies. Because of a family secret, an ancient curse,Twig has had to isolate herself from other kids. Then a family with two girls, Julia and Agate, moves into the cottage next door. They are descendants of the witch who put the spell on Twig's family. But Julia turns out to be Twig's first true friend, and her ally in trying to undo the curse and smooth the path to true love for Agate and James." - Goodreads



If you have never read a book by Alice Hoffman, what are you doing with your life?

In Nightbird, we follow Twig and her family who live in a small town in Massachusetts. Sidwell is not only famous for it's delicious pink apples, but also the monster that resides in the woods. A witch cursed Twig's family 200 years ago and her brother James is still paying the price. Due to the curse, Twig hasn't been able to make friends since she was a child. That changes when a new family moves into the house next door, which the Witch of Sidwell used to own. 

I read this on audio book, which I think was perfect. The narrator did a great job at making each character stand out. Twig is fantastic. While she is terribly shy and people tend to overlook her, she grows so much as a character in this book. She becomes her own person and I really liked seeing the friendships she made along the way. James is wonderful too, and I really enjoyed their relationship.

I've only read Alice Hoffman's adult books. Going in, I thought this was going to be a juvenile book but it reads more as a young adult, which may be due to the ages of the characters.

Nightbird is such a magical book. Everything about it comes together so beautifully. Many of Alice Hoffman's books take place in New England. I've always thought it is the perfect setting to her writing. There's a touch a magic and mystery to this book that I just couldn't get enough of.

I won't give away too much about the ending of the book, but I think it was fantastic. There were a few things I saw coming, but I was really happy to see they played out the way I wanted them too. There were some things that maybe happened too quickly, or were too convenient, but I loved them anyways. I think a lot of that is because it is such a short book, and geared for a younger audience. The story is so beautifully written and the ending wraps everything up nicely. 

I would recommend listening to this on audiobook. It's one of the first one's I've really enjoyed and I think it brought new life to the story.