Ages 4 to 6Kirkus: 4–6; Publishers Weekly: 5 and up
The age tag follows Kirkus review. Other sources may suggest different ages. This is audience guidance, not an independent reading level.
On a list of 31 picture books about kindness. The list says that in a city of hurried people only Will notices the hurt bird, and that his mother helps him take it home.
In a spare, mostly captioned story, a pigeon falls injured on a city sidewalk and the crowds step over it. A boy named Will picks it up and has his mother carry it home. He and his parents bandage and feed it for about a month. On the last spread they release it, and it flies away.
Recommended by Reading Middle Grade
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Will stops for an injured pigeon that everyone else steps over, carries it home and keeps caring for it with his parents until it can fly. Will is the one person in a hurried crowd who notices the hurt bird and does something about it.
The pigeon recovers and flies off, and Will’s care is rewarded with its return to the sky.
PW says the book dwells on patience and that the family’s earnestness “may exasperate some grown-ups”. Read as a quiet, story-led picture book rather than a lesson, but the tone is solemn. Sparse text and wordless spreads: moments come from Kirkus, PW and a publisher-style blurb on the parent list.
On a list of 31 picture books about kindness. The list says that in a city of hurried people only Will notices the hurt bird, and that his mother helps him take it home.
Read Afoma Umesi’s recommendationWe have checked source descriptions and drafted the value mapping. We have not personally reviewed the full book. The value labels, situation assignments, and parent notes remain provisional.
Publisher or literacy resource · Original recommendation
Our explanation of the value fit is separate from the original reviewer’s judgment. Their inclusion here does not imply an endorsement of Stories for Growing.
Included in a librarian’s list of picture books about bullying. The librarian calls the wordless story a way to talk about empathy and courage, and says it shows small actions can lead to big changes.
Recommended by Children’s Library Lady
Listed by Sarah Miller under Service.
Recommended by Can we read? — Children’s books about values