1998 KIND Children's Book Award Recipient

Flute's Journey
By Lynne Cherry
San Diego: Harcourt Brace & Company 1997; Ages 4-8

In a leafy nest on the branch of a dogwood tree, a wood thrush hatches from a blue-green egg. Blind and featherless, he's protected by his parents, who keep him safe and warm. It's May, and we are deep in Maryland's Belt Woods.

As spring gives way to summer, the baby bird tries out his wings. Under his parents' watchful eyes, he begins exploring the old-growth forest. Then, one cool September evening, he embarks on his first migration-a journey that will take him thousands of miles from home.

Despite the dangers he encounters on the way, the wood thrush reaches Costa Rica's Eternal Forest of the Children-so named because children saved it from being cut down. But his return trip to Maryland the next spring may not prove as successful. Many natural landmarks that guided him are gone. Wilderness areas-including a tract of his native Belt Woods-have been replaced by farms, highways, and housing developments. Will the songbird who survived pesticides and predators now lose his nesting grounds? Or will children once again come to the rescue?

Flute's Journey is a story that unfolded as author Lynne Cherry wrote it. "I wasn't sure how it would end," she says, "because an organization that owned Belt Woods was preparing to sell the land to developers." Cherry met with the group's leaders to ask them to reconsider. Using Flute's Journey as a bargaining tool, she told them, "You can decide whether or not this book has a happy ending." Cherry also spoke to audiences of teachers and students, urging them to make their feelings known. As a result, hundreds of letters poured in from children, environmental activists, and other concerned citizens. Bowing to public pressure, the group decided to preserve the songbird habitat.

Your students will delight in the hopeful message in Flute's Journey, winner of this year's KIND Children's Book Award. They'll also be interested to learn that Cherry wrote and illustrated her first book at age ten. "Growing up," she says, "I didn't have a TV. I spent hours watching and drawing animals in the woods near my home."

Cherry-who directs the Center for Children's Environmental Literature-believes kids can make significant gains for animals and the Earth by working within their own cities and towns. "Children deserve places to enjoy nature," she says. "We should remind them that they have a say in how their communities are designed by encouraging them to talk to planning and zoning officials and local government leaders."

Cherry also points out that she and KIND teachers have a lot in common: "We're committed to educating future generations, to giving them the inspiration and knowledge they need to maintain a healthy planet. We start by showing we care about animals, children, and the environment."

For information on saving songbird habitats in your community, write to Save the Land You Love, Center for Children's Environmental Literature, P.O. Box 5995, Washington, DC 20016.

Other titles worth adding to your bookshelf:

 The MAGIC SQUAD and the Dog of Great Potential (New York: Delacorte Press, 1997), by Mary Quattlebaum, with illustrations by Frank Remkiewicz; Ages 4-8. What does ten-year-old Calvin Hastings have to say about the big, untrained, homeless mutt at his neighborhood animal shelter? “This dog has great potential.” Calvin’s not like his gifted brother, Monk, or their overachieving friend Jenny. He has to study harder and put in extra effort. But when it comes to fostering and training his new canine companion and finding him a good home, Calvin doesn’t mind the practice and hard work. And in the process, he learns that he too has great potential.

 Common Ground: The Water, Earth, and Air We Share (New York: Blue Sky Press, 1997), by Molly Bang; Ages 7-10. Long ago when villagers used up natural resources, the solution to their problem was simple: move. But now, readers are reminded, “we don’t have anyplace else to go.” This parable motivates kids to think about environmental problems, including Earth’s limited resources. Animals hidden throughout the colorful illustrations point out how much we stand to lose if we don’t take better care of our planet.