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A review by lib_britannia
Wizard of the Pigeons by Megan Lindholm
5.0
Wizard of the Pigeons lingers in the heart and mind long past the point of finishing it. Perhaps it is because I both love and live in the Pacific Northwest so the compelling and strangely intimate telling of this particular setting speaks to me, but I find myself drawn more to the blurred lines between reality and fantasy to be found here.
Beyond that, Lindholm crafts a careful examination of a topic rife with tension, especially in Seattle. As always, Lindholm respects the intelligence of her reader. She does not draw conclusions for the reader about Wizard and his life as a person without a home. Instead she provides a beautifully designed framework through which the reader glimpses pieces of that life.
The addition of subtle fantasy to an already complex tale creates a powerful tension that is hard to resist. Is Wizard merely a homeless veteran? Troubled by mental illness as so many of the vulnerable people in our communities are? Or is he truly a wizard? A man of immense power, a Guardian angel of the city and its pigeons?
There are no easy answers to be found here, only complex questions about complex issues.
Beyond that, Lindholm crafts a careful examination of a topic rife with tension, especially in Seattle. As always, Lindholm respects the intelligence of her reader. She does not draw conclusions for the reader about Wizard and his life as a person without a home. Instead she provides a beautifully designed framework through which the reader glimpses pieces of that life.
The addition of subtle fantasy to an already complex tale creates a powerful tension that is hard to resist. Is Wizard merely a homeless veteran? Troubled by mental illness as so many of the vulnerable people in our communities are? Or is he truly a wizard? A man of immense power, a Guardian angel of the city and its pigeons?
There are no easy answers to be found here, only complex questions about complex issues.