Birds on a Wire: A Novel

· Kregel Publications
1 review
Ebook
328
Pages
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About this ebook

"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." —Publishers Weekly

A deeply moving contemporary story about family and foster care from a two-time Christy Award-winning author

When her newborn son, Providence, is taken by CPS, eighteen-year-old Bri Marshall is determined to do whatever's necessary to get him back—with or without Providence's father. But hurdles like no job, car, or family support complicate the process. Bri never expected to sink this low. What will it take to hold her baby in her arms again?

Thirty-nine-year-old Laura Gambler, facing the big 4-0, is managing new challenges with her own children when she's asked to take in baby Providence. She could never have imagined the chain of events that agreeing to foster would set in motion—or the carefully buried pain from her past it would drag back to the surface.

Both women wrestle with doubts about the future and their ability to parent Providence, even as their love for him grows stronger every day. As their lives become irrevocably intertwined, the two very different women face the same impossible question: Who is the best mother for Providence?

"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." —Publishers Weekly A deeply moving contemporary stor...

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Ratings and reviews

1 review
Phyllis R
April 25, 2026
Birds on a Wire is a candid look at being a foster mom and being the mom who lost her baby to foster care…Two points of view…Two women loving a child named Providence. Another heartfelt story from Katie Powner. This book ended with me in tears, heart aching, prayers lifted for foster kids, foster families and broken parents. A read I won’t forget. I received this book from the author/publisher free of charge, with no expectation of a positive review. I also purchased a print copy of this book.
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About the author

Katie Powner is a multi-award-winning author of contemporary fiction, including The Sowing Season, A Flicker of Light, The Wind Blows in Sleeping Grass, Where the Blue Sky Begins, and When the Road Comes Around. She and her husband have adopted internationally and have been fostering children in Montana for almost eight years. She blogs about family, adoption, and fostering at katiepowner.com.

Katie Powner is a multi-award-winning author of contemporary fiction, including The Sowing Season, A Flicker of Light, The Wind Blows in Sleeping Grass, Where the Blue Sky Begins, and When the Road Comes Around. She and her husband have adopted internationally and have been fostering children in ...

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