{"product_id":"the-birds-began-to-sing","title":"The Birds Began to Sing","description":"\u003cb\u003eGodfrey applies skills drawn from TV detective shows to attempt to solve the mystery disappearance of a local gay bartender in 1960s NZ, while exploring his own sexuality.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eReggie was still missing after five days, and Gladys Harris was saying things about him that quivered in my mind, which now, four years later, I see as being that opening sentence leading me to this burden of what happened to Reggie Kingsley.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the harbour city of New Plymouth in the 1960s there's a fizz of seedy sexuality beneath a veneer of respectability. Godfrey's world is the Balmoral Hotel his parents own, where visiting sailors drink and local fringe-dwellers congregate.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen Reggie, the openly gay barman, goes missing Godfrey senses something sinister. There's a prevailing attitude of inevitability. Godfrey doesn't get it, but he's hungry to understand. Guided by his daytime-television and pulp-fiction detective heroes and a very active imagination, he attempts to solve the mystery-in the process stumbling into his own sexual adventures and discovering a new-found power in a perplexing adult world.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Birds Began to Sing\u003c\/i\u003e delves into a world of shadows, nods and unspoken understandings with a warmth and humour that make this novel a delight.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A novel filled with humanity, warmth and  humour.' \u003cb\u003eLloyd Jones\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e'Heartbreaking, hilarious and boldly written. A bona fide page-turner about the importance of living your own truth.'  \u003cb\u003eNigel Featherstone\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e'An absolute joy.' \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eOtago Daily Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e","brand":"Jeffrey Buchanan","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43516758065213,"sku":null,"price":33.24,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0597\/7689\/2989\/files\/9781923058439.jpg?v=1787572186","url":"https:\/\/www.palmleaf.com.au\/products\/the-birds-began-to-sing","provider":"Palmleaf","version":"1.0","type":"link"}