Birds on a Wire

Two women are bound by their love for one infant—only weeks old and already facing impossible odds—in this nuanced outing from Powner (The Sowing Season). Bri Marshall, 18, is reeling after Child Protective Services removes her newborn son, Providence, from her care following her positive test for methamphetamine. Without a job or a family to support her, Bri confronts a system that feels insurmountable even as she grapples with her culpability in losing custody. Meanwhile, 39-year-old Laura Gambler, already a mother to a strong-willed first grader, is feeling uneasy about her crumbling marriage and parenting skills when she’s asked to foster Providence. As Providence’s needs compound, what began an act of compassion becomes a reckoning with Laura’s sense of inadequacy as a mother, and she begins to question whether loving the child is an act of generosity or something darker. When Bri and Laura meet by chance, a fragile connection forms, but as Bri’s challenges to regaining custody mount and Laura grows increasingly attached to Providence, each woman is conflicted about God’s plan for the future—and what is best for the baby. Powner alternates perspectives between her protagonists, eliciting readers’ empathy for both women, and vividly contrasting Bri’s desperation and hope with Laura’s guilt, love, and longing. This emotionally resonant tale resists easy answers. (Apr.)