Through the process of death, Shannon finds peace. Shannon Bennet finds hope, love, and an understanding that loss is inevitable. Sweet Bird of Prey opens a discussion about a serious epidemic that circulates in the halls of every high school through a dialogue that easily flows from a 13 year-old girl's perspective. It also leaves the reader with an understanding about death and loss at a young age. Sweet Bird of Prey is a story that highlights issues such as bullying, loss, boyfriend drama, the relationship between mother and daughter, gossipy girls, drinking, social dilemmas, depression, suicide, and high school cliques. Although, it appears melancholy, the book is filled with hope. Shannon describes the aftermath of loss and how it affects her relationships, her thoughts on God, and her over-all social life.
Shannon has a confusing and complex relationship with her brother Phillip, who suffers from undiagnosed depression, and his subsequent suicide throws her into the midst of anger and guilt that suicide often brings on. This, it turns out, is Smollett-Bell's happy place.Sweet Bird of Prey is the sensitive and surprisingly humorous story of Shannon Bennet, a thirteen year old girl who narrates her junior and senior years of high school. She's dressed for the club, but she's not being cute or striking sexy superhero poses - she's angry as hell and kicking would-be rapists in the face. Seeing that this usually quite capable Gotham badass is clearly in need of some assistance, Dinah, clad in a gold bra, heeled boots, and bell bottoms, swoops in to take down the letch and his equally shitty pals. It's at this precise moment that a lecherous club goer takes it upon himself to prey upon this woman who can barely stand, let alone consent to any bedroom activities. Dinah Lance, aka Black Canary, busts into Harley Quinn's (Margot Robbie) life at a pivotal moment: Distraught over her breakup with the Joker (once played by Jared Leto in the much-maligned Suicide Squad, aka Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Film), Harley finds herself, well, hammered. If that doesn't work, however, it doesn't take Warner Bros.' new Harley Quinn vehicle long to drive that point home. From that moment, it’s clear Black Canary’s kind of a big deal. You don't need to know an ounce of comic book history to understand what’s happening when Jurnee Smollett-Bell's character enters Birds of Preyby shattering a glass with nothing but the sweet sounds of her voice.