Blackbird is the true story of the author Jennifer Lauck from
tha age of 5 until she was 12. A rather grim portrait of Jennifer as a child, whose mother was chronically ill for most of her young years, and then dies when Jennifer is only 6 As if life hasn't already thrown her a curve ball her father quickly remarries and Jennifer's step-mother,a rather cruel woman at best, brings her own children to the Lauck family. And sure enough her step-mothers children amuse themsleves by tormenting Jennifer knowing that their mother will always side with them. When her father suddenly dies, the author is left with her brother, step-mother,step sisters and step-brother. Now she is at this woman's mercy and Jennifer's childhood spins totally out of control as her step-mother is quite nasty to Jennifer and her brother, then doesn't care properly for Jennifer or her brother and finally sends her away from her brother and step-family to live and work alone in communal home situation when shes not even 12.

I really can't say that I enjoyed this book. To do so would make me feel as though I enjoyed sombody else's misery. What I can say is that on several levels I appreciated the writing and gut wrenching emotions which found their way into the pages of this book. I also think there are many questions the book raises not the least is why Jennifer and her brother didn't go to the authorites when left with their step-mother or her mother and father's family now say that thes allegations were untrue. But then one has to wonder why the author would choose to write a book as non-fiction rather than fiction unless her story was true. And for those who wept at the book White Oleander for the young character, Astrid, Jennifer's story will reduce you to the same tears, only more if you believe what she writes is true. As a mother and daughter my heart broke over the childhood Jennifer missed out on. The ordeal she went through kept me up late at night questioning why none of her family members bothered to take either of these children in when they were first orphaned. And the revelation about Jennifer's true parentage had me wondering if life could have been any harder for her than the one she lived as a child in these circumstances.

This was truly a a difficult book to to read but also proved to me how some people survive against all odds. The end of the book finds Jennifer on the way to her grandparents home and one can only hope that life will be better for her in the future. What happens as Jennifer continues to grow up is chronicled in the sequel to this book Still Waters which I read shortly after Blackbird. Suffice it to say I found Ms. Lauck to be one strong child and whose life I won't soon forget.

Perfect use of the child's voice and the child's point of view. It's the only way this story could have been successfully told. Otherwise, it'd read as self-gratifying pathos. In the immediacy of the child's voice, it reads as spare truth without the self-pity that writing from the distance of adulthood might have introduced.
An unbelievable series of tragic events ripped this family apart: death of the mother, remarriage of the father to an unloving woman, death of the father, exploitation by the stepmother in order to continue receiving the social security checks, involvement with some weird religion, persecution and abandonment of the children...the list goes on and on till finally Jennifer is pretty much on her own in a communal quasi-religious household, cut off from all her relatives and still just a child. Rescue by a seemingly loving aunt and uncle comes at the end...but read the sequel to find out the rest of this horrific story.
Yeah, it's depressing - but Blackbird is also full of hope and it's written in such a lyrical style that you can't help but continue reading. However, I'm glad I didn't know any more about the rest of her life till later. Jennifer Lauck was only 11 or 12 at the end of this odyssey of endurance, and you just know that's not the end of her story.
You would be right.

Blackbird proves that no matter how much pain a child or young adult endures, if they're strong enough it is possible to grow up to lead a well balanced and productive life. All too often, with the help of psychologists and therapists, adults blame their lack of success in life on their parents. We are all so busy spending so much time blaming others, we fail to reach our potential.

Jennifer Lauck, the author of Blackbird, suffered greatly and uses her childhood experiences to tell a spellbinding and heart-rending story of the loss of innocence and survival. It is amazing that a 6 year old child could not only survive the pain that was inflicted on her, but rise above it and tell her story to the entire world.

The writing style is unique. Written in the perspective of 6 yr old Lauck, the story tells everything from the kitchen counter down. Some passages and thoughts are totally random and Lauck goes into great detail about the strangest subjects... just like the mind of a 6 yr old. I think this is one reasons I like the book so much. Lauck was able to capture and describe the way a child thinks and views the world in an incredible way.

I look forward to reading the follow-up to Blackbird. I am concerned for lauck's brother B.J./Bryan. Lauck describes his deeply burried anger throughout the book, and I fear for his ability to cope with that anger later in life.