✨❄️🐦 Fairytale Friday 🐦❄️✨
Frequent Fliers
Winter doesn’t empty the landscape; it just changes the guest list. This week’s selection is Winter’s Birds by May Garelick, with illustrations by Clement Hurd, published in 1965 by Young Scott Books in New York.
In this quiet, observant picture book, Garelick keeps track of the birds around her home as the seasons change. Some stick it out through snow and cold, while others politely excuse themselves and reappear in spring. There’s no judgment here, just observation. Staying and leaving are both perfectly valid choices, depending on your feathers.
May Garelick (1910–1989) began writing children’s books in the 1950s after working behind the scenes in New York publishing. She was known for listening closely, especially to children, and for letting curiosity lead the way. That spirit is evident here. Winter’s Birds feels less like a lesson and more like an invitation to notice what’s already happening just outside the window. It reads like the literary equivalent of standing at a window with a mug in hand, quietly noting who’s brave enough to show up today.
The illustrations by Clement Hurd (1908-1988), familiar to many from Goodnight Moon, bring warmth and personality to winter scenes that might otherwise feel stark. His birds feel alert, busy, and very aware of where the food situation stands.
Winter’s Birds reminds us that winter has its own rhythms and its own regulars. I’m fairly certain this one has Max’s stamp of approval, and possibly a few strong opinions about which birds are the real stars.
---Melissa (deferring to Max on bird rankings), Distinctive Collections Library Assistant
