An exploration of how grief and loss can rupture families, this book allows its characters to be flawed, ugly, and infuriating while they process the ways in which their world has changed, and the ways in which it has always stayed the same. The story wallows in the reality of the world around them, the grime, the humidity, creating a sense of claustrophobia, along with the static nature of the characters’ lives.
Inside the peacock was a fascinating mess. We widened the slit large enough for Lolee to reach inside, pulling out innards as gently as she could: the twisting, looping swing of intestines, dark with feed and insects and bits of greenery; gristle and tendons; the fatty bits behind the haunches where all domesticated birds picked up weight.
