Ahoy there me mateys! This novella won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novella in 2021 and was a finalist in the novella category for both the 2020 Nebula and Locus awards.  I loved this introduction to the Birdverse.

The Four Profound Weaves. A carpet of wind, a carpet of sand, a carpet of song, and a carpet of bones. Change, wanderlust, hope, and death.

In this story, the two main characters are mid-sixties transgendered characters.  Uiziya is a desert weaver who has been longing to learn how to weave using death.  Her famous aunt Benesret was supposed to teach her but was exiled 40 years ago.  The Nameless Man, a trader, transitioned late in life and is longing to discover his true name and how he belongs in the world.  By transitioning, his sex now matches his gender but he does not fit in his culture's fiercely gendered world.  The bad guy in the story is "The Collector" who takes whatever he wants and rules with an iron grip.  When Uiziya and the Nameless Man set off to answer their questions, they both inadvertently have to deal with The Collector too.

It took me a little bit to settle into how the world worked but it ended up being fascinating.  The world building is lovely.  I loved the deity, Bird, and how it appears differently to each person.  I loved the descriptions of the various cultures.  I adored the desert culture in particular.  The magic system deals with "deepnames" and I find the concept fascinating.  Also I loved the characters so very much.  The writing style was wonderful.  Just be prepared that there is not a lot of explanation for how things work and the reader picks up hints and concepts as they go.

The only minor quibble I have is that the ending was not satisfying to me as it felt a little too philosophical in a way that I didn't enjoy.  But really I do recommend this one to the crew who like stories that feel like ye be reading a myth or fairytale.  Arrrr!

I loved this review by Matey Andreas.  He explains this book much better.  Check it out.