A simply written animal tale with grade school–accessible vocabulary that’s sure to entertain children despite the mixed...
What does it take to raise chickens in the city? A woman and her cat find out in this true story by debut author and photographer Burrill.
“I’d heard that it’s cheap, easy and fun to raise egg-laying chickens in the city,” Burrill begins, her words accompanied by a clip-art chick and a photograph of her home’s garden shed. As she recounts the tale on text-dense pages, always with her own photographs or clip art present, she reveals it is indeed inexpensive to begin this project, but that the time and effort required to care for chickens and collect their eggs are far more than she bargained for. First, she purchased three small chicks, whom she kept indoors in a heated cage. It was there that her black cat, Tinker, fell in love. Rather than want to eat or torment the chicks, Tinker mothered them, draping herself on top of their cage to watch their antics. Burrill invited some local children to name the chicks (Daisy, Maizey, and Omelette). As the three grew, their chirping became louder, and Tinker fretted about her brood. Her worries only became worse after they moved outside to the backyard. After the chickens matured, Burrill was excited to see the first egg, but she was not prepared for Maizey escaping over her backyard fence to discover a good laying spot. Maizey led Burrill on a wild hunt, laying her eggs in odd places, and soon the other chickens followed suit. The chickens’ mischief overshadowed Tinker’s role in raising them, but eventually the cat helped Burrill locate an escaped hen. This child-friendly series opener offers an appealing tale. But some of the references and puns the author makes may fly over the heads of young readers (about the notion of buying grocery-store eggs, she explains, “I’d feel like a traitor, an ‘Eggs Benedict Arnold’ ”). And the human cast lacks diversity. Nevertheless, children should easily imagine Burrill having to rake out seven hidden eggs from beneath her shed and her attentive cat protectively watching over the adorable chicks. The clip art adds little to the text, but the author’s photographs are excellent, giving readers a clear sense of what it’s like to be a chicken-raising hobbyist.
A simply written animal tale with grade school–accessible vocabulary that’s sure to entertain children despite the mixed style and quality of the illustrations.Pub Date: Feb. 9, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5144-4989-9
Page Count: 44
Publisher: Xlibris
Review Posted Online: May 25, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An ebullient nature lover’s paean to birds.
A charming bird journey with the bestselling author.
In his introduction to Tan’s “nature journal,” David Allen Sibley, the acclaimed ornithologist, nails the spirit of this book: a “collection of delightfully quirky, thoughtful, and personal observations of birds in sketches and words.” For years, Tan has looked out on her California backyard “paradise”—oaks, periwinkle vines, birch, Japanese maple, fuchsia shrubs—observing more than 60 species of birds, and she fashions her findings into delightful and approachable journal excerpts, accompanied by her gorgeous color sketches. As the entries—“a record of my life”—move along, the author becomes more adept at identifying and capturing them with words and pencils. Her first entry is September 16, 2017: Shortly after putting up hummingbird feeders, one of the tiny, delicate creatures landed on her hand and fed. “We have a relationship,” she writes. “I am in love.” By August 2018, her backyard “has become a menagerie of fledglings…all learning to fly.” Day by day, she has continued to learn more about the birds, their activities, and how she should relate to them; she also admits mistakes when they occur. In December 2018, she was excited to observe a Townsend’s Warbler—“Omigod! It’s looking at me. Displeased expression.” Battling pesky squirrels, Tan deployed Hot Pepper Suet to keep them away, and she deterred crows by hanging a fake one upside down. The author also declared war on outdoor cats when she learned they kill more than 1 billion birds per year. In May 2019, she notes that she spends $250 per month on beetle larvae. In June 2019, she confesses “spending more hours a day staring at birds than writing. How can I not?” Her last entry, on December 15, 2022, celebrates when an eating bird pauses, “looks and acknowledges I am there.”
An ebullient nature lover’s paean to birds.Pub Date: April 23, 2024
ISBN: 9780593536131
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A heartwarming and inspiring story for animal lovers.
The third volume in the Elephant Whisperer series.
In this follow-up to An Elephant in My Kitchen, Malby-Anthony continues her loving portrait of the Thula Thula wildlife reserve, which she co-founded in 1998 with her late husband, South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony, who published the first book in the series, The Elephant Whisperer, in 2009. Following his death in 2012, Malby-Anthony sought to honor his legacy by continuing his vision “to create a massive conservancy in Zululand, incorporating our land and other small farms and community land into one great big game park.” At the same time, the elephants gave her “a sense of purpose and direction.” In the Zulu language, thula means quiet, and though the author consistently seeks to provide that calm to her charges, peace and tranquility are not always easy to come by at Thula Thula. In this installment, Malby-Anthony discusses many of the challenges faced by her and her staff, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. These included an aggressive, 2-ton rhino named Thabo; the profound loss felt by all upon the death of their elephant matriarch, Frankie; difficulty obtaining permits and the related risk of having to relocate or cull some of their animals; the fear of looting and fire due to civil unrest in the region; and the ongoing and potentially deadly struggles with poachers. Throughout, the author also shares many warm, lighthearted moments, demonstrating the deep bond felt among the humans and animals at the reserve and the powerful effects of the kindness of strangers. “We are all working in unity for the greater good, for the betterment of Thula Thula and all our wildlife….We are humbled by the generosity and love, both from our guests and friends, and from strangers all around the world,” writes the author. “People’s open-hearted support kept us alive in the darkest times.”
A heartwarming and inspiring story for animal lovers.Pub Date: April 25, 2023
ISBN: 9781250284259
Page Count: 320
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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