Little Red Bird

PreS-Gr 1Life in a birdcage is good for Little Red Bird. Food, water, and reading material are always in ample supply. One day, she notices an interesting sight through the window and decides to venture out through the open cage door. She arrives in the park that had been beckoning to her and sees many wonderful new thingsflowers, a fountain, a bench, and sticky trash. But when she spies her old home from afar, she begins to miss the comforts of her cage and must decide whether to return. Her story ends unresolved. "Should she stay?/Should she go?/She just didn't know]/I wonder what YOU would do?" Bruel relates this "grass-is-always-greener" tale in rhythmic verse that could use a little extra sparkle. The colorful watercolors show an eye for comic-book-style story progression, but the bird herself lacks the stroke of visual personality necessary to keep young audiences coming back. Despite the rough spots, Bruel's narrative invites discussion and could be considered as an additional purchase."Jayne Damron, Farmington Community Library, MI" Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Kirkus Reviews Little Red Bird "had all she could need— / She had water and seed / And plenty to read," but she longed, we are told, to be ever so bold: to spread her red wings and to see all the things outside of her place and the curtains of lace at the window of her dim abode. When she finds (to her glee) portals open—she's free!—she is wracked with a moment of doubt. "Should she stay, should she go?" And do you, reader, know what you'd do if 'twas YOU wanting out? Freedom tastes pretty fine, and the park is divine, and she may even make a new friend. Trade the comforts of home for a new life, unknown? That's the gamble of life without end. Pictures lavender-lit are a marvelous fit for this story that's told all in rhyme. When you choose your own way, there's a price you must pay—it's a quandary as old as all time." (Picture book. 7-12)"
Booklist
When Little Red Bird sees that the door to her golden cage is open, she is faced with a quandary: stay in her home, or explore the unknown? Once she has toured the bedroom, the open window beckons. But after a long day outside, discovering the joys of a nearby park, Little Red Bird finds that she misses some aspects of caged life and debates about whether to return. Bruel, author of Bad Kitty (2005), does a good job of spinning a rather sophisticated theme in a kid-friendly manner, inviting children to ponder the bird's dilemma with a repeated refrain: "I wonder what YOU would do?" Energetically mixing panels and full- page art, the illustrations point Little Red Bird (and readers) in a clear direction, showing human habitations as uninvitingly black, gray, and straight lined, while the park offers a riot of colors and shapes. Therhyming narrative, though sometimes forced, is appealingly bouncy and will draw children through the small hero's exciting peregrinations until the final page, which hints at a satisfying conclusion while leaving room to wonder. — Krista Hutley