Sonya loves her chickens. She has three and she has raised them from tiny chicks. She makes sure they have enough water, fresh straw, and lots of delicious corn. It is not a surprise that one day Sonya finds the perfect gift - a smooth, warm, brown egg. But ...
"One chilly night, Sonya woke to a ruckus of squawking and shuffle-y bump noises from outside. ... The floor of the coop was frosted with feathers, and Sonya cried out as she counted not three, but two frightened chickens cowering in the rafters above. The third was nowhere to be seen."
Sonya is desperately upset but her father offers some beautiful wisdom. Yes this does seem very unfair but now let's think about the fox. That fox also works hard to feed his babies.
"He didn't care that it was our chicken he took. He just saw it as a chance to feed his family. I know you feel sad, but you wouldn't want those baby foxes to go hungry, would you?"
Sonya's Chickens was published in 2015 and it won an Ezra Jack Keats award for a new illustrator. I was very surprised to discover it is not out of print. Here are some details of the paperback edition.
Here is my Pinterest collection of picture books about chickens. You can see more books illustrated by Phoebe Wahl here. Here is a video of Sonya's Chickens. I would share Sonya's chickens with slightly older children aged 7+ and you should make sure you leave time for discussion and questions.
Bookseller blurb: When Sonya discovers the answers, she learns some important truths about the interconnectedness of nature and the true joys and sorrows of caring for another creature.
Companion book:
No comments:
Post a Comment