Bird Hugs

Bernard is a tiny bird whose long wings—so long that when he stands on a tree branch, the wings tumble almost to the ground—mean that he doesn’t fly like the other birds. Adamson (A Fox Found a Box) draws his protagonist in expressive watercolor and pencil: Bernard is a softly textured lilac circle with big eyes and a pert orange beak. When it’s clear that not even a catapult can help him fly, Bernard takes to “a lonely branch,” but stops feeling sorry for himself when he discovers that he is uniquely suited to offer enveloping, life-affirming hugs. First he perks up a depressed orangutan (“I feel very sad and I’m not sure why!”), and soon all the animals (and a brave worm) are lining up—not only for hugs but for some therapy as well (“Sleeping in the day, I feel like I’m missing all the fun,” a glum bat confides). The lesson is a simple, familiar one—selflessness and sympathy are key to making friends—but Adamson’s gentle humor and his eager-eyed characters’ yearning become an eloquent testimony to the power of a little TLC. Ages 3–7. [em]Agent: Isabel Atherton, Creative Authors. (Feb.) [/em]