Bert, the Bowerbird: The Small Bird wiith a Big Heart

PreS-Gr 1–PreS-Gr1 Julia Donaldson (The Gruffalo) returns with a picture book about the bowerbird, a real creature found mostly in Australia. Back matter explains that male bowerbirds collect and display objects to woo potential mates, and that is what we find our title character doing as the book opens. Bert (a “small bird with a big heart”) first adorns his bower with a modest purple flower, which is not enough to impress Nanette, the object of his affection. Each day Bert adds more to the bower and each day his efforts fail to win over haughty Nanette. Many pilfered items and a love triangle later, Bert finds his happy ending with a humble kindred spirit named Jean. Children may not be naturally enthralled by a bird’s romantic disappointments, but the growing collection of interesting objects —which eventually includes almost two dozen trinkets including a snail shell, a silver bell, and the wrapper from a caramel —is intriguing and presented in a rhythmic way that builds upon itself. Raynor imbues the birds with lively personalities and her layered art is a perfect complement to Bert’s mating style. The pictures are whimsical but fairly realistic, rendered in colors that one would find in a bowerbird’s habitat.