Chapter 11

Christmas for Birdy when she was young was spent mainly crying in her room and listening to her mom and dad have constant rows. Growing up, Birdy had moved a lot, sometimes staying with her family relations to avoid her father’s abuse.

Birdy’s father, Mr. Simpson, was a very religious man who joined a small religious sect after marrying Birdy’s mom, Anna. He would often leave the house at odd hours of the night to join his sect because, according to him, “that was the best time to chase demons.”

He also tried to persuade Mrs. Simpson to join him, but Anna refused. Anna was non-religious, even though she had grown up in a religious African-American home where her parents were devout Catholics. Anna had been drawn to Mr. Simpson because, at the time, he seemed intelligent, and they would often have exciting conversations about the philosophy and existence or non-existence of God.

Part of Mr. Simpson’s religion was to disagree wi