Product Description

In a spare urban fable, Bob Graham brings us one small boy, one loving family, and one miraculous story of hope and healing.

"No one saw the bird fall."

In a city full of hurried people, only young Will notices the bird lying hurt on the ground. With the help of his sympathetic mother, he gently wraps the injured bird and takes it home. In classic Bob Graham style, the beauty is in the details: the careful ministrations with an eyedropper, the bedroom filled with animal memorabilia, the saving of the single feather as a good-luck charm for the bird's return to the sky. Wistful and uplifting, here is a tale of possibility — and of the souls who never doubt its power.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #15626 in Books
• Published on: 2008-08-26
• Released on: 2008-08-26
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 40 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780763639037
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From School Library Journal
Starred Review. Kindergarten-Grade 2—Poignantly told and visually rich, this narrative flies high. When a pigeon breaks its wing, no one notices except Will. Sporting a bright red jacket, starkly contrasted against his drab surroundings, he and his parents take the injured creature into their home. Clean lines and effective panels showcase its steady recovery, readily receiving encouragement from the family along the way. Graham's succinct text masterfully reveals the bird's resilience. "A loose feather can't be put back/but a broken wing can sometimes heal." Pen, watercolor, and chalk illustrations add depth to this tender tale as the injured bird wistfully watches a flock of flyers outside Will's window. Exemplary use of color and perspective denote shifting moods, and thin lines enhance the vulnerability of this boy and his bird. Gently expressed and honestly delivered, this quiet, yet powerful story provides young readers with an affirming conclusion.—Meg Smith, Cumberland County Public Library, Fayatteville, NC
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From Booklist
*Starred Review* Quietly, effectively, Graham tells the simple story of a boy who finds a fallen bird and nurses it back to health. The text is minimal. In a busy city, “No one saw the bird fall.” But a little boy walking with his mother spies the injured bird and brings it home. Up until this point, the art has effectively utilized the oversize format, filling it with full-page pictures, vertical and horizontal strips, and cartoon-style boxes in cloudy hues. At the moment the boy lifts the bird, Graham slows the story and offers a two-page spread full of bright, hopeful colors and an intense focus on the boy with the bird in hand. Turn the page and both mood and perspective change once more. Now the pages are full of people, walking, biking, rushing, while in an upper corner of the spread, encircled in a glow, readers find boy and bird; the unspoken, unwritten message is clear. Who cares in such a large place if a small pigeon falls? One child does. Although the rest of the story is a little anticlimactic, there is a satisfying reality to it as the bird is bandaged, heals, and is set free. Because this is such a visual piece, however, readers, young and old, will return to the story to look more deeply; they won’t be disappointed. Preschool-Grade 1. --Ilene Cooper

Review
"* "Simply magical." Junior on Jethro Byrde, Fairy Child (9781844284825)."

Customer Reviews

Often the Things We Overlook Need the Most Help
Most of us can honestly say that pigeons are not our favorite animal. One such bird has fallen and broken his wing. Will, a little boy growing up in a big city, seems to be the only person who notices this injured bird. His mom lets him take it home, and together with his parents, he nourishes the bird back to health and releases it back to its home.

Bob Graham does an excellent job with both the writing and illustrating. There are simple sentences every couple of pages, which is perfect for beginning readers. The drawings are kid-friendly and will be very relatable to them. This book gives hope to the next generation to be more aware of their natural surroundings and to do what they can to help. It has a great message of an unselfish boy learning about what he can do to give back. Usually, we are trying to teach our children life lessons, in this book there is a lesson to be learned from Will.

Reviewed by Jennifer LeBrun

Simple yet powerful book about hope, recovery, and love
The premise is simple. A young boy, Will, finds an injured bird unnoticed by everyone else in the big city. He and his mother take it home to nurse it back to health, and with a lot of love, care, and hope, the bird flies again. The text is sparse, yet powerful, and the soft and richly detailed illustrations of Will caring for the bird add an inspirational and heartwarming tone.

But what is best about this book is that it's about much more than a boy caring for an injured bird. It's about hope, dedication, healing, recovery, and beating the odds. But don't worry...the beauty of the book is that it does not contain "in-your-face" messaging. It's subtle yet powerful for those who may be seeking a little comfort. I shed a tear or two reading the book and would recommend giving it to anyone who has had or is going through a rough patch in their lives. This is one of the books that I think should be in everyone's library, not just a child's library. I highly highly recommend it!

This is a charming, heartwarming book that you'll need a rocking chair and a child to share it with!
It was the city and no one ever seems to notice anything there because with their fast paced lives they didn't have the time and so when the little pigeon injured himself flying into a glass window, no one noticed . . . except Will. He was trying to reach for the bird, but his mother appeared to be trying to hold him back. He finally got to him and his mother helped wrap him in a scarf to take him home.

You can't put back a feather, but sometimes a broken wing can be healed. Mom and Dad carefully placed the pigeon in a box. The pigeon had a splint on his wing. Will was going to count down the days on his calendar, but would the bird get better? Only time would tell and then he would know if the bird would ever fly again.

This charming and heartwarming book is a Red Clover nominee for the 2009-10 academic year. The dialogue is minimal, but the detailed artwork relays this story to the heart much more than any words could convey. The only thing left out is a rocking chair and a young child to share this lovely book with!