The Bird Hotel

 Joyce Maynard is the author of the novel, The Bird Hotel. This is literature and historical fiction and travel writing. The story goes over 40 years. The story starts out when Irene is 4 years old and living/traveling with her Mom and the Mom's boyfriend as they travel across the country to attend a music festival called Woodstock. Irene is a neglected child who really doesn't understand that she is neglected. She ends up living with her Grandmother who tells her never to speak about her mother anymore. Irene grows up to be a talented artist. Tragedy strikes her again and she just up and leaves. She ends up in Central America at a hotel. The owner of the hotel, a kind and giving woman, takes her in and gives her space to heal. Eventually she inherits the hotel and brings it back into full service supervising the many necessary repairs. Irene meets many characters in her life as a hotelier. She leads an interesting and fulfilling life. I could honestly tell that the author has spent time in small villages in Central America. I loved reading this book and hated to see it end.