For the first time ever, it will just be Adam, his mom and his aging grandmother at their cabin on Three Bird Lake. His parents have recently divorced, and although it will be a different kind of summer, 12-year-old Adam looks forward to escaping the routine of school, sitting on the dock by himself and watching the loons. But his grandmother has other ideas and decides he should learn to canoe around the lake by himself. After disappointing her with his inept efforts, he finds a curious note in her handwriting that sends his summer in a new direction.
There has been talk of a cute new girl in the neighborhood, and Adam resists his family’s expectation that they’ll become boyfriend and girlfriend. But when Adam and Alice take a daylong canoe trip, she turns out to be much better friend material than he’d expected. The two end up spending every day of the summer together, canoeing, swimming and tackling a mystery set in place years ago when his grandmother was young and in love with someone else—not Adam’s grandfather.
Three Bird Summer will charm readers with its tale of a summer that is very different indeed.
Billie B. Little is the Founding Director of Discovery Center at Murfree Spring, a hands-on museum in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
This article was originally published in the May 2014 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.
