All the Birds in the Sky is the story of a relationship between a witch named Patricia and a mad scientist named Laurence.
Patricia has magical powers, from an early age. When she tries to rescue a small bird with a broken wing, she discovers she can understand what the bird is saying—and she can talk to other creatures in the forest, as well. But becoming a fully-fledged witch is no easy process, and Patricia’s powers aren’t at all reliable. Once Patricia is a grown-up, she’s mastered her powers—but now she has to deal with the other witches, who worry that Patricia will break the one and only rule of magic.
Laurence is an engineering, math, and computer genius, who builds a time machine when he’s still a pretty young boy. As he grows up, Laurence builds a supercomputer in his bedroom closet. And when he’s a fully grown adult, Laurence joins a secret organization and devotes himself to the problem of Saving the World. But Laurence finds that Saving the World isn’t as easy as it sounds, and he may have to be more than an engineering genius to pull it off.
The relationship between Laurence and Patricia is at the heart of the book, and it’s all about being different. And about two very different ways of seeing the world. They meet up as kids, and they struggle to survive the horrors of middle school – everything from mean kids to a school guidance counselor with a deadly secret. And then 10 years later, they meet again, after Patricia has graduated from a magical school, and Laurence has become a genius engineer and “wunderkind.”
And then, Patricia and Laurence face the ultimate challenge: How to make sense of life, sex and the messiness of adulthood. (And it doesn’t help that they might be at the center of a conflict that could destroy the entire planet.) It’s a book about friendship, love, misunderstandings, and the power of whiskey and hot chocolate.
“In All the Birds in the Sky, Charlie Jane Anders darts and soars, with dazzling aplomb, among the hypotheticals of science fiction, the counterfactuals of fantasy, and the bittersweet mundanities of contemporary American life, throwing lightning bolts of literary style that shimmer with enchantment or electrons. She tackles profound, complicated questions, vast and insignificant as the fate of the planet, tiny and crucial as the vagaries of friendship, rocketing the reader through a pocket-sized epic of identity whose sharply-drawn protagonists come to feel like the reader’s best friends. The very short list of novels that dare to traffic as freely in the uncanny and wondrous as in big ideas, and to create an entire, consistent, myth-ridden alternate world that is still unmistakably our own, all while breaking the reader’s heart into the bargain—I think of masterpieces like The Lathe of Heaven; Cloud Atlas; Little, Big—has just been extended by one.” — Michael Chabon (Telegraph Road, The Yiddish Policemen’s Union)
“The characters leap off the page… The result is a weird and charming read.” — The Guardian
“Charlie Jane Anders has entwined strands of science and fantasy, both as genres and as ways of experiencing life, into a luminous novel that reveals the exhilarating necessity of each.” — John Hodgman (The Areas of My Expertise)
“All the Birds in the Sky reads like an instant classic… Deep, dark, funny, and wonderful!” — Indie Next Pick for February 2016. (Sara Hinckley, Hudson Booksellers, Marietta, GA)
“Thoughtful and hip and fantasy and sci-fi all wrapped up. A+” — Felicia Day
“Into each generation of science fiction/fantasydom a master absurdist must fall, and it’s quite possible that with ALL THE BIRDS IN THE SKY, Charlie Jane Anders has established herself as the one for the Millennials… It’s complex, and scary, and madcap… The result is as hopeful as it is hilarious, and highly recommended.” — N.K. Jemisin, New York Times Book Review
“What a magnificent novel—a glorious synthesis of magic and technology, joy and sorrow, romance and wisdom. Unmissable.” — Lev Grossman (The Magicians)
“Anders’ knock-your-socks-off blend of science and magic will be a strong contender for science fiction and fantasy awards, appealing to not only genre fans but also those looking for great literary reads.” — Booklist (Starred Review)
“A fairy tale and an adventure rolled into one, All the Birds in the Sky is a captivating novel that shows how science and magic can be two sides of the same coin.” — Nancy Hightower, Washington Post
“Charlie Jane Anders’ brilliant, cross-genre novel All the Birds in the Sky has the hallmarks of an instant classic. It’s a beautifully written, funny, tremendously moving tale… Like [William] Gibson, Anders weaves a thrilling, seat-of-the-pants narrative with a compelling subtext.” — Elizabeth Hand, Los Angeles Times.
“Anyone suffering from midwinter blues should read Charlie Jane Anders’s between-categories fantasy, “All the Birds in the Sky.” The scenario is (almost) Harry Potter, the tone is (quite like) Kurt Vonnegut, the effect is entirely original… Charlie Anders is a new voice, witty, charming, thoughtful and sometimes mordant.“ — Tom Shippey, Wall Street Journal
“Two crazy kids, one gifted in science, the other in magic, meet as children, part and meet again over many years. Will they find love? Will they save the world? Or will they destroy it and everyone in it? Read Anders lively, whacky, sexy, scary, weird and wonderful book to find the answers.” — Karen Joy Fowler (We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves)
“Warm, funny, sardonic — the best debut novel I’ve read in ages.” – Charles Stross (Neptune’s Brood)
“Reminiscent of the best of Jo Walton and Nina Kiriki Hoffman.” — Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)
“At turns darkly funny and deeply melancholy, this is a polished gem of a novel from the Hugo Award–winning (for the story “Six Months, Three Days”) editor in chief of the website io9.com… Readers will follow Patricia and Laurence through their growing pains, bad decisions, and tentative love.” — Library Journal (Starred Review)
“Imagine that Diana Wynne Jones, Douglas Coupland and Neil Gaiman walk into a bar and through some weird fusion of magic and science have a baby. That offspring is Charlie Jane Anders’ lyrical debut novel All The Birds In The Sky… a brave, genre-bending debut that, as satisfying as it is, perhaps hints at even more greatness to come.” — David Barnett, The Independent
“With All the Birds in the Sky, Anders has given us a fresh set of literary signposts — and a new bundle of emotional metaphors — for the 21st century, replacing the so many of the tired old ones. Oh, and she’s gently overturned genre fiction along the way.” — Jason Heller, NPR
“Whimsical and precise, romantic and wickedly witty, this is the great American fantasy novel with knobs on… Anders has been compared to David Mitchell, but she’s snappier than him - toss Louis Sachar’s narrative brio and Douglas Coupland’s deadpan panache into a cauldron of chaos magic and you’re nearer the mark.” — Jamie Buxton, The Daily Mail
“All the Birds in the Sky takes two very distinct genres and blends them together seamlessly. Lovers of science fiction and fantasy will be deeply drawn into this world, which hangs in the balance between a couple of extraordinary young people.” – Veronica Belmont, Sword & Laser podcast
“Everything you could ask for in a debut novel – a fresh look at science fiction’s most cherished memes, ruthlessly shredded and lovingly reassembled.” - Cory Doctorow (Little Brother)
“This book is a beta from an indie making magic spell apps. It’s an interactive guide to artisanal potions. This book is the first person you know with a crazy realist 3D tattoo. This book is a hipster and a nerd and when you read it you’ll know what I mean.” - Maureen McHugh (After the Apocalypse)
“Fucking brilliant. Fully of crazy wisdom. Like nothing else I’ve ever read.” — Ramez Naam (Nexus)
“Charlie Jane Anders, part visionary, part romantic, one hundred percent gifted storyteller has written a gem of a novel in “All The Birds in the Sky.” A love story for our age and the next, and maybe the one after that.” — Tom Barbash(Stay Up With Me)
“All the Birds in the Sky is a love story that melds Gaiman-esque magic with Gibson’s near-future angst.” — Scott Sigler
“A friendship between two adolescent misfits is the catalyst for an apocalyptic reckoning in Anders’s clever and wonderfully weird novel… Fans of genre fiction will be delighted by Patricia and Laurence’s story, and Anders’s smart, matter-of-fact prose will appeal to a mainstream audience as well.” — Publishers Weekly
“All the Birds in the Sky is one of the most surprising novels I’ve read this year, and for the most part one of the most delightful. Anders manages to make all of these risks pay off… Anders’s approach to writing about childhood echoes that of Daniel Pinkwater.” — Gary K. Wolfe, writing in Locus
“Tech culture’s strange relationship with nature takes centre stage in All the Birds in the Sky, a vivid, genre-blending novel from a writer who is clearly one to watch.” — Rowland Manthorpe, Wired
“It’s every bit as imaginative, witty, and moving as you’d hope… an entertaining and audacious melding of science, magic, and just plain real life that feels perfectly right for our time.” — Isaac Fitzgerald, Buzzfeed Books newsletter
“All the Birds in the Sky is a perfect synthesis of both sides of her writing life: a deeply felt story of love, magic, science, growing up an outsider, and living in apocalyptic times, bubbling over with a deep knowledge of genre history and geek culture.” — Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi Blog
“Anders brings so many cool ideas to this story, and if there’s one thing you can say about All the Birds in the Sky, it’s that it’s completely unpredictable… Anders’ prose seems simple and straightforward, but put all those simple and straightforward sentences together and you have a wonderfully quirky style that reminded me a lot of Kelly Link’s. ” — Books, Bones & Buffy
“Every so often a novel comes along that begs to be discussed among friends, argued over coffee, and read until the spine breaks. All the Birds in the Sky is such a book. It’s a gorgeous coming-of-age story about magic and science, the apocalypse, and love.” — Aidan Moher, writing in Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi Blog
“Thrilling, moving and fantastically well written, All the Birds in the Sky is a book that revels in its own geekiness, and transcends it to create an immensely satisfying tale about people, the planet, life, witches, robots – don’t walk to the bookshops for this one, RUN!” — The Bookbag
“And that’s what’s fresh and vibrant about All the Birds in the Sky. Its standard genre tropes are well-chosen tools for doing a story that’s about growing up, realizing who you are in the world, and then, far more importantly, realizing that the entire narrative of growing up and realizing who you are in the world is complete and utter bullshit and that the world is a terrifying and confusing place comprised entirely of people who are trying desperately to fool each other into thinking they aren’t total fuckups. The magic/science opposition is there to be a binary opposition, with all the useful truth and false dichotomies implied.” — Philip Sandifer
“If there’s any justice in the world, this book will be the next The Night Circus – it made me feel that same joy while reading and it carries with it the same authorial joy and delight at the magic of the world (whether that magic manifests as magic or tech.)… What a way to kick off my year in reading.” — Raging Biblioholism
“It’s a messy, rambling, heartfelt, wild and woolly narrative, with delights that arrive at the rate of multiple times a page. If 2016 gives us five more books that provide this much fun, while still tackling the big questions, it will be an exceptional genre year.” — Adam-Troy Castro, Sci Fi Magazine
“An exploration of the stories we tell ourselves about why we act the way we do… highly absorbing and enjoyable - 4 stars.” — SFX Magazine
“All the Birds in the Sky… might have suffered under the weight of high expectations if it didn’t so easily soar above them…. All the Birds in the Sky is a triumph.” — Shelf Awareness
“Both characters’ failings are instantly recognisable as those of young adults going out into the world for the first time and discovering that their actions have consequences beyond themselves. Because of this, and because the characters recognise and learn from their mistakes, Patricia and Laurence always remain sympathetic.” — Fantasy Faction
“Anders approaches her characters with intense sentiment, whether that be love or fear, but without ever becoming sentimental. I got the sense that she really enjoyed writing these characters, as she pushed them through trial after trial (social, professional, and mystical), and that in turn made me love her characters. All the Birds in the Sky is, above all else, a character-driven drama about ties that bind.” — John Saavedra, Den of Geek
“Anders has created an utterly convincing and affecting central friendship, with all its highs and lows, flaws and triumphs… This is a wonderful read.” — Jonathan Hatfull, SciFiNow (5 Stars)
“It’s a riotous garden of a book, full of ideas and a fun sense of letting things go to see what happens. All the Birds In The Sky takes on heavy themes like fate and choice and environmental collapse, but makes it feel more like it’s dancing with them than wrestling.” — Samantha Holloway, New York Journal of Books
“I’m not being overly dramatic when I say that All the Birds in the Sky is one of the best novels I’ve read in months. It mixes magic and science, coming-of-age and truly growing up, talking cats and time machines, absurdity and philosophy, and love and fear in a stunning tale of a witch and a tech genius.” — Adrian Liang, Omnivoracious
“Anders adeptly twines magic, surrealism, technological innovation and machinery into a quirky story that, at its base, is about searching for common ground in a world of differences.” — BookPage
“I liked how All the Birds in the Sky surprised me… It was well worth my anticipation, and the sort of book that I think I can read numerous times and interpret it different each time. Anders is an incredibly clever writer, and her book is so incredibly human and genre bending at the same time, I couldn’t help but be amazed.” — Bookworm Blues
“I’m already a big fan of blurred lines, genre-bending novels and this one blew me away and was every bit as unique as I had hoped it would be. For a debut novel, I really think this is something special, and think it would also make an amazing movie. Fingers crossed it gets the accolades it deserves.” — Bookshelf Butterfly
“All the Birds in the Sky took me on a wonderful journey.” — Books, Life and Everything
“This is a wonderful novel… Anders has created two lead characters the reader can believe in.” — Clandestine Critic
“This book convinced me love still exists in 2016.” — Tropedo
“An emotionally and ethically complex science fantasy.” — Annabel’s House of Books
“Do me a favour and give this one a read… It kept me thinking about it long after I turned the final pages.” — Tesscatiful
“This geeky, spiritual love story is strong enough to keep listeners riveted, and [Alyssa] Bresnahan’s performance is the icing on a very tasty cake.” — Audiofile Magazine
“When wizards meet scientists who have created time machines, one is left with no option but to expect wonders of the best kinds.” —The New Indian Express
“Those of you reeling at the thought of reading any sci-fi beyond The Martian, take heart: This apocalyptic tale is a sly take on modern love and the need to figure out our planet’s future.” — San Francisco Magazine (including pie-chart!)
“Heartfelt, ambitious and dynamic. Fantastic stuff.” — James Lovegrove, Financial Times
“A delightfully disruptive novel… relevant and powerful.” — The Mary Sue
“One of the most intriguing new novels of the year, partially because it defies definition… Think of it as magical realism for the digital age.” — Baltimore County Public Library
“This is by far one of the best debut novels in the genre in years… A bright new author, destined to do well.” — Andrew Musk, Starburst Magazine
“The craziest thing about Charlie Jane Anders’ book is how it remains so intimate and accessible despite genre jumping… All that magic and science only highlights how special it is to find that someone whose companionship feels like it could defy tragedy.” — Cesar R. Bustamante, Jr., New York Daily News
“Readers will undoubtedly hear echoes of Kurt Vonnegut, Ursula Le Guin, William Gibson, Philip K. Dick, J.K. Rowling, Lev Grossman and a host of other possible influences in “All the Birds in the Sky.” But the novel never feels derivative, achieving a unique narrative alchemy that makes familiar conceits sparkle anew… The novel is clearly something special, already a contender as one of 2016’s better books.” — San Francisco Chronicle
“Anders writes gorgeous, exciting prose, and the moral and narrative complexity she’s set up in All the Birds in the Sky carries all the way through its ambitious, heartbreaking, hopeful ending. This book has been tremendously well received, and will most likely earn itself a place on the shelf among all its venerable influencers as a new addition to the canon.” — Los Angeles Review of Books
“Anders… writes lean, judicious prose that’s cinematic enough in its cuts and imagery but doesn’t forget that some of us prefer reading a story over any other form of ingesting narrative.” — Jim Higgins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
