I met up with Hwee of Hwee’s Book Share Club recently, and she gifted me (okay, my kids) an autographed copy of ‘Little Godwit finds his Wings’. We were all instantly charmed by Little Godwit, and were rooting for him as he went in search of his family.
Little Godwit hatches late and is left behind by his family which has flown far south for winter. Other well-meaning birds try to help him by accepting him into their flocks, but as he tries (and fails) to learn their skills, he becomes extremely demoralised, simply because he is made differently. After spending some time reflecting on his purpose in life, Little Godwit decides to follow his instincts, and is finally reunited with his family.
My kids were tickled by the cute illustrations of Little Godwit fumbling as he tried to mimic the other birds, and were captivated by the colourful images of his long flight to find his family. The twins were really excited when his flock came into view, and were so pleased that he was able to find them.
I liked that parents can engage younger children by going through the discussion questions at the end of the story. In addition, if you’re like me and have never heard of godwits before, the author has thoughtfully included a page filled with interesting facts about the bar-tailed godwits at the end of the book, complete with QR codes that you can scan for even more information. This is perfect for more independent readers, and encourages them to do their own research too.
There is so much to be learnt from this deceptively simple story. Children, and perhaps even adults, can be inspired by Little Godwit’s willingness to try new things, his ability to recognise when he is just not suited for some things, his maturity in reflecting on his experiences, and his ultimate persistence in finding his flock. Little Godwit displays true grit, as despite being slower (hatching later) than the rest of his flock, he shows resilience and courage in his quest to catch up with them.
Happy reading!
Buy the Book Little Godwit finds his Wings is available at Popular Bookstores and Kinokuniya. It is also available online at the following websites: Marshall Cavendish Kinokuniya Online GoGuru
GIVEAWAY! We have an AUTOGRAPHED copy of ‘Little Godwit finds his Wings’ to be given to a reader of Growing with the Tans! To participate, please visit our Instagram page for books. Terms and conditions apply.
Terms and Conditions: This giveaway will end on Friday, 8th November 2019, at 2359h, and is open to readers with a Singapore mailing address only. The winner will be contacted via the particulars provided when entering this giveaway, and will have 24 hours to respond, failing which a new winner will be selected. All incomplete entries will be disqualified, and all entries will be verified before the winner is announced. To be fair to our sponsor, please note that all fake Instagram accounts (accounts set up purely to take part in contests, with no or very few real posts), will be disqualified.
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