'The best books, reviewed with insight and charm, but without compromise.'
- author Jackie French

Monday 19 August 2024

Review: Tweet

Jay, and his budgie Clyde, are brothers at heart. Family. They are left with Poppa when their parents, specialists in bird behaviour and habits, go to Africa for research.

Their return is now four weeks overdue, and Jay and Poppa are unable to contact them.

Poppa dies suddenly. Jay and Clyde are left alone, then separated. Jay is put into foster care, but runs away to go in search of Clyde.

He discovers their house emptied of its contents, and all evidence of the family’s existence removed, which includes Clyde’s cage.

A series of sinister happenings begin for which there is no explanation.

Flocks of birds are congregating in masses all over the world. Is there an underlying message to humans in their behaviour?  

The two people who could give an explanation for this unusual occurrence still cannot be found.

Where are Jay’s parents? Who are the people that claim to be from the government trying to help Jay find them?

 Are they really who they say they are?

Clyde is also seeking Jay. His life till now has been his cage and being cared for by his human family. He too escapes. His journey to find his brother links him with the free birds who help him search.

Clyde’s journey is a becoming. He is slowly transformed from who he was to what he was meant to be.

Important issues surrounding the mystery of Jay’s missing parents are uncovered.

This is an interesting, fast-paced mystery/suspense with environmental significance. It addresses global warming, and the important role that birds play in the balance of nature, and people’s lives.

Deeply moving, Tweet is written in a light-hearted, casual tone, but with powerful references to the need for immediate action to be taken for the preservation of the human species.

Title: Tweet
Author: Morris Gleitzman
Publisher: Penguin, $17.99
Publication Date: 3 April 2024
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781761343742
For ages: 8 – 14
Type: Middle Grade Fiction