Toward the end of Silver Sparrow, a character says, "Someone should write a book on the secret lives of girls" (326). Tayari Jones has done just that, and done it beautifully. This is an engrossing story about the lives led by the daughters of a man married to two women. The first half is told by the adult Dana, the daughter of the unacknowledged wife; the second half of the book is narrated by Chaurisse, the daughter of the publicly acknowledged wife.

One of the early reviewers of the novel says it best: "A story of sisters and secrets, Silver Sparrow will break your heart before you even know it." This happens because you are just enjoying the story as told by each women, going on a journey through her childhood and becoming invested in her take on things. After all, it is her experience that she is recounting, so it is accurate from her point of view. Each woman's take on her position in the situation, which neither of them would've chosen, is valid and believable. So, when you come to the point where you learn what happens after Chaurisse knows what Dana knew all along (that they are sisters and that their father has lived a double life), you identify with both of them, and it's clear that there are no winners.

As painful as that reality is, the novel is a pleasure to read. Quite simply, it is a story well told and powerfully rendered!