Parliament, The

Description: Madigan Purdy is stuck in her home town library. When tens of thousands of owls descend on the building, rending and tearing at anyone foolish enough to step outside, Mad is tasked with keeping her students safe, and distracted, while they seek a solution to their dilemma. Perhaps they'll find the inspiration they seek in her favorite childhood book, The Silent Queen.... With food and fresh water in low supply, the denizens of the library will have to find a way out, and soon, but the owls don't seem to be in a hurry to leave... The Parliament is a story of grief and missed opportunities, but also of courage and hope. And of extremely sharp beaks. Author Biography: Aimee Pokwatka (she/her) grew up in Wheeling, West Virginia. She studied anthropology at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and received her MFA in creative writing from Syracuse University. Her debut novel, Self-Portrait with Nothing was published in 2022 to wide acclaim. Her work has been published in Fairy Tale Review, Outlook Springs, Hunger Mountain, and elsewhere. She lives in New York with her family.