DESCRIPTION
In a cozy room in northern Germany, a yellow canary sings rolling melodies to the miners and carpenters of the Harz mountains. But today a bird dealer has come, and he will take the canary far, far away from everything he knows. The journey leads onto trains and steamships, across Europe and even the Atlantic. At last the canary arrives in a room in New York where he hears a strangely familiar song…
This beautiful, poignant book introduces readers to the little-known history of a beloved songbird. Lushly illustrated in rich colors, 189 Canaries is an unforgettable story about music, migration, and the search for home.
AWARDS and RECOGNITIONS
International Board on Books for Young People IBBY Honour List (2022)
The United States Board on Books for Young People Outstanding International Books List (2022)
REVIEWS
Publishers Weekly
“Older children partial to illustrated animal-centered fiction will find much to appreciate.”
Kirkus Reviews
“A quiet story that savors the historical details of a bird’s trans-Atlantic journey.”
School Library Journal
“A delightful story of a little-known piece of history, with the added bonus of a fun math connection for students studying multiplication.”
The Horn Book Magazine
“The storytelling style uses the present tense to pull the reader directly into a faraway time and place. Böge’s narration is full of sensory details . . . that are particularly appropriate for a story about a bird prized for its voice. Klever’s mixed-media illustrations, with a muted color palette, have the flat perspective of folk art.”