The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender is another book that I requested from the library. This young adult novel was written by Leslye Walton.

The most remarkable thing about Ava Lavender is that she is born in 1944 with a set of wings. But in order to understand why something so peculiar would happen, we need to go back to the beginning.

Ava’s grandmother spent her first years in France until her father gets the wild idea to move his entire family to the land of golden opportunities: America. To be specific, they are headed to the island of “Manhatine”. From there, Ava’s grandmother makes her way to Seattle. Throughout the story, there are many instances of sorrow and loss. Even the house in Seattle has a tragic past, years before Ava’s grandmother moves into it.

Naturally, being born with a set of wings presents a unique set of challenges, and Ava is the bearer of her family’s legacy. She is certainly a curiosity, but she is only the latest peculiar thing to happen in the family. Ava wants nothing more than to be a normal girl, but is that even a possibility?

I can’t say too much more without starting to give things away, but this was an incredibly poignant book. There were several points where I had to stop and just marvel at the exquisite writing. This was Walton’s debut novel, and it is absolutely amazing.

I would recommend The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender. The storytelling was rich and engaging. I thoroughly enjoyed my experience, and I was very sad when it ended. The Audible edition is currently available for $5.95, and I’m thinking about picking it up.

If you would like some more information, you can find it here: The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender