Maggie and the Moonbird

Sixteen short chapters furnish this book from Bloomsbury Readers. Ten-year-old Maggie sits on the stairs, boots on, binoculars round her neck, a scowl on her face. Her father had pinkie promised to take her out birdwatching that day, and now he says he is too busy. (Not Now, Bernard?) Her father explains that today he MUST spend in his garden tending the soil and the many thousands of strange plants that creep and twist and blossom there. People pay a lot of money for them, Maggie knows, but she resents the attention her father lavishes upon them. Then Dad taps his phone, arranging for Maggie to join Aunt Polly and two cousins on a trip to the zoo. Does Maggie want to go? NO. This is the sixth time her dad has cancelled their plans at the last minute because of his stupid plants. It is so unfair! At the zoo, Maggie is sad to see so many wild animals caged. She only becomes interested when they arrive at the aviaries where the birds constantly strive to reach the skies above. For Maggie knows a great deal about birds; their hollow bones, wing spans, feather tips and bird songs. Her attention is immediately caught by an amazing bird huddled in the corner of a cage. It has silvery sparkling feathers, a curved pearl beak and glittering opal eyes. Maggie’s heart beats faster and faster. The bird flaps its wings and a single feather spirals gently to the ground, glowing moon-bright. Maggie lifts the feather gently. She discovers it makes her fingers tingle, and her arms itch. Chapter five begins with strange happenings, Maggie having placed the feather under her pillow. Developing great feathery wings, she is soon test-flying across the garden, which is glowing with her father’s luminous fragrant flowers that bloom only at night. Very strange adventures follow as Maggie and her new-found wild bird friends help her release the caged birds at the zoo, and it is discovered that the moonflowers, favourites of her Father’s, are the magic food needed by the fabulous moonbird to sustain its health and beauty. ‘Wowsers trousers!’ whispers Maggie as she realises she has a magic feather which enables her to join the moonbird on nightly flights of adventure. The book is littered with pictures, of Maggie, her Dad and their garden, but mostly of birds and the wonders of flight. The book ends with three pages of quiz questions about book content (eg what is the name of Maggie’s cat?) and activities to get the sparky reader tracing back through the book to find answers. Just right for the emerging reader who loves a fantasy.