Neighbourhood Nest

Neighbourhood Nest by Sarah Jane Lightfoot (Affirm Press) HB RRP $24.99 ISBN: 9781923046818

Reviewed by Dannielle Viera

One morning, a magpie discovers a strange egg in her nest. She decides to look everywhere until she finds ‘this egg’s family’. From the willie wagtails’ webbed refuge and the kookaburras’ tree hollow to the swallows’ brown-mud construction and the fairy wrens’ twiggy retreat, she searches high and low with no luck. At the end of the day, she returns home and spies a tawny frogmouth whose nest has broken apart. The egg hatches to reveal a baby tawny frogmouth, so the magpie invites the mother to share her nest.

Sarah Jane Lightfoot takes three-to-eight-year-olds on a magical mystery tour of the neighbourhood, as the persistent protagonist tries to solve her enthralling egg enigma. Rhyming couplets glide on wings of feathered facts, gently introducing youngsters to various birds’ abodes, environments, food and offspring. Those readers who are genuinely fascinated by avian activity will flock to the detailed information at the end of the book.

Sarah Jane’s realistic illustrations bring Australian birds to life, and they can be used by kids to identify the flying creatures that visit their backyard. But the characters also have a whiff of whimsy, ensuring that the magpie’s journey touches hearts. And for keen eyes, there’s an object-finding game that will keep littlies poring over the images for hours.

With Neighbourhood Nest by their side, children will become champion birdwatchers in no time! In the process, they will develop an appreciation for the precious fledglings that are growing up alongside them.