Tag: birds

Lee & Low Books. 2025.

Reviewed by: Alma Ramos-McDermott

Category: Elementary school

Rating: 5 stars

Though Mia is blind, her teacher taught her to “see” birds through listening to their songs and calls. One sunny, spring afternoon she and her aunt set off for the park where Mia identifies multiple types of birds through their songs. She calls herself a bird-listener, instead of a birdwatcher, and uses her listening skills to teach her aunt how to identify the many different birds they hear. As they walk, Mia eagerly anticipates hearing her favorite bird, and is thrilled when she finally gets to hear it. Its voice makes her feel as if she’s flying into a singing sky with it.

As Mia and her aunt lead readers along a paved path through the woods, their journey is shown through full-page, colorful illustrations. The text is filled with descriptions readers can hear and decipher such as the “klunk, thunk” of closing car doors or the sound of a crunchy pathway. Idioms like “notes come pouring out of the sky like raindrops” or “songs weave together like tangled threads” keep Mia’s story flowing. Young readers will not only learn the sounds of different birds but will enjoy interpreting the many uses of figurative language in phrases such as “a whisper of wings,” and “wind…flows over me like water, and “notes come pouring out of the sky like raindrops.” The back matter includes sources where readers could go to learn more about birds.

Highly recommended for ages 6-10.

Note: This review was originally published on You decide: Should I read it or not?

Reproduced here as a courtesy to Alma Ramos-McDermott