How to Turn Into a Bird

*A Washington Post and Ms. Magazine* Best Book of December

"This book is a gift." ―Megan McDowell

From the award-winning author of How to Order the Universe, Marìa José Ferrada beautifully details the life and lessons of an unconventional man and the boy who loves him.** After years of hard work in a factory outside of Santiago, Chile, Ramón accepts a peculiar job: to look after a Coca-Cola billboard located by the highway. And it doesn't take long for Ramón to make an even more peculiar decision: to make the billboard his new home.

Twelve-year-old Miguel is enchanted by his uncle's unusual living arrangement, but the neighborhood is buzzing with gossip, declaring Ramón a madman bringing shame to the community. As he visits his uncle in a perch above it all, Miguel comes to see a different perspective, and finds himself wondering what he believes-has his uncle lost his mind, as everyone says? Is madness-and the need for freedom-contagious? Or is Ramón the only one who can see things as they really are, finding a deeper meaning in a life they can't understand from the ground?

When a local boy disappears, tensions erupt and forgotten memories come to the surface. And Miguel, no longer perched in the billboard with his uncle, witnesses the reality on the ground: a society that, in the name of peace, is not afraid to use violence.With sharp humor and a deep understanding of a child's mind, How to Turn into a Bird is a powerful tale of coming of age, loss of innocence, and shifting perspectives that asks us: how far outside of our lives must we go to really see things clearly?