Publisher's Synopsis
The Firebird flies into Cody Hoffman's life on his thirteenth birthday, in a flaming burst of brilliant red. It is a startling moment. Not many people have seen the Firebird, but now Cody has, and he knows instinctively that the mysterious bird has come to him for a special reason. A mystical bond is formed between the Firebird and the shy, handicapped boy. Left with a crippled leg from a bout with Polio when he was four, Cody moves slowly, dragging his bad leg as a constant reminder that he is not a normal boy. Shunned by his peers, he knows he is loved by God. A devout Catholic, he loves in return to the depths of his soul. And that should be enough for anyone, except that Cody is living out his days tormented by Mac McCarthy. Mac is an older boy who stalks Cody hoping to lure him into a sinful relationship by showing him magazine pictures of men and boys in lewd acts. When Christ was tempted by the devil, He said, "Get thee behind me, Satan." But Cody can't escape that easily. Maybe the Firebird has come to help him free himself from Mac. The Firebird leads Cody to an old shed where Mac has his stash of filthy magazines. Cody sets the shed on fire, destroying everything in it. Livid, Mac forces Cody to submit to a vile act that robs him of his purity and destroys his beautiful relationship with God. He is thrust from the innocent world of a child into the sinful world of adults, and he is drowning in a sea of guilt and shame. Was burning the shed a mistake? And what happened to the Firebird? Has Mac killed him? While he suffers, trying to find a way to make Mac pay, Mac dies in a freak accident. Cody is rid of Mac but no closer to God. What does he have to do to receive God's forgiveness? Firebird is a beautifully written story of the triumph of good over evil, and the healing power of forgiveness.