Rebecca Rasmussen‘s debut novel The Bird Sisters is on my must read list.

Here’s a description:

When a bird flies into a window in Spring Green, Wisconsin, sisters Milly and Twiss get a visit. Twiss listens to the birds’ heartbeats, assessing what she can fix and what she can’t, while Milly listens to the heartaches of the people who’ve brought them. The two sisters have spent their lives nursing people and birds back to health.

But back in the summer of 1947, they knew nothing about trying to mend what had been accidentally broken. Milly was known as a great beauty with emerald eyes and Twiss was a brazen wild child who never wore a dress or did what she was told. That was the summer their golf pro father got into an accident that cost him both his swing and his charm, and their mother, the daughter of a wealthy jeweler, finally admitted their hardscrabble lives wouldn’t change. It was the summer their priest, Father Rice, announced that God didn’t exist and ran off to Mexico, and a boy named Asa finally caught Milly’s eye. And, most unforgettably, it was the summer their cousin Bett came down from a town called Deadwater and changed the course of their lives forever.

Here’s what people are saying about The Bird Sisters:

“Achingly authentic and almost completely character driven, the story of the sisters depicts the endlessly binding ties of family.” —Publisher’s Weekly

“Rasmussen’s debut novel is full of grace and humanity. Her heroines are fearless and romantic, endearing and engaging, and her poetic prose creates an almost magical, wholly satisfying world.” —Library Journal, Starred Review

“A magical debut, original and poignant, lovely and moving. The Bird Sisters evokes the richly imaginative joys of childhood and the throat-aching betrayals and loyalties of being an adult.” –Jenna Blum, Bestselling Author of Those Who Save Us and The Stormchasers

And here’s the trailer:

You can follow Rebecca on her blog, Twitter, and Facebook.  She’s touring this spring! You can see if she’s doing a reading near you on her website.