2025
We fly and we flap
coo and crack
chirp and croak
trip and pull
then we sit on the stairs
and roll and troll
scout in the air
and long and call
Then we chase around
sail and wander
soar and climb
crash and land
We don't want to go into
storm or calm
we are at home in the wind
we are free and wild
Gjermund the Wren and other noisy birds is an imaginative and playful gateway to the close and accessible Norwegian bird fauna for children. Author Lisbeth Dreyer has taken as her starting point quite ordinary birds that live quite ordinary bird lives, but has composed amusing situations in rhyme.
The book conveys the material in a way that both challenges, engages and inspires children to notice the bustling bird life that they have right outside their door, on their way to kindergarten and school.
Per Ragnar Møkleby makes the birds personable, but always grounded in how they actually look and live in nature – so that children can learn about and recognize the birds in the book.
The book is sure to spark interest in these elusive creatures that fly in flocks, gather in the square, and build nests in trees. The birds live their lives side by side with us, but can still feel distant. The book inspires readers to become more observant of what is happening in nature.
The book has a presence that engages and inspires. It makes the reader aware and challenges what we already know and know, or perhaps take for granted, about the birds that surround us. This is a wonderful picture book for the enjoyment of young and old in kindergarten and grades 1–4.
