This Place Is For The Birds! Free by Sam Usher

WHEN I WOKE UP THIS MORNING, ONE OF THE BIRDS WAS SICK.

When a boy finds a ailing bird stretched out on his windowsill one morning, he knows who to call--Granddad, who has books on everything! They make the bird comfortable while Granddad consults a volume on bird facts. He gives the bird some water, and when the bird revives, Granddad prescribes putting him outside.

"DO I HAVE TO?"

But Granddad insists that the bird would not want to be kept inside.

THAT'S THAT!

But while the boy and Granddad are whipping up a pile of pancakes, the bird strolls back inside, warbling a greeting. Granddad suggests putting him on a blueberry bush, near the window, and it seems that that is that. But at lunchtime, the same bird shows up again on the kitchen table. Granddad suggests giving him free range of the bird bath. But at teatime that afternoon, there he is again, hopping across the kitchen floor. The boy is overjoyed.

"I THINK HE LIKES US! HE KEEPS COMING BACK!"

And indeed the bird does settle down, perching on Granddad's newspaper. Granddad determines that they must make a trek to find the bird's home tree, so with their backpacks loaded with expedition supplies, the two follow the bird, who flies straight for a big tree atop a steep mountain. It's a hard climb, but...

"WE MADE IT!"

The birds, perched wing to wing on the branches of the tree--pelicans to parrots, owls to ospreys--and many varieties unknown to man, are singing and peeping and hooting and warbling to greet them. And after refreshments, the boy and Granddad are given an avian airlift for their return flight home....

THEY FLEW US ALL THE WAY HOME, BACK IN TIME FOR BREAKFAST!

It's a genuine flight of fancy, in Sam Usher's new first book in a prospective four-book series in his FREE (Candlewick/Templar Books, 2021) in which grandfather and grandson fly as free as birds with their new feathered friends. For young readers who like to spread the wings of their imaginations, fans of author-illustrator Sam Usher's earlier boy and Granddad books, the Seasons series (see review here) will want to continue their fanciful adventures in the great outdoors.

Stormy Weather! The Storm by Sam Usher

When I woke up this morning, the wind was rattling the windows. I couldn't wait to go outside.

Granddad said, "It's a perfect day to fly the kite! But we'll have to find it first."

There's a big storm a-brewin'! It's time for some breezy fun.

Boy and grandfather look for the kite in the kitchen. They don't find it, but they do find Granddad's old cricket bat. He demonstrates his swing, and they move on to the study, where Granddad's stack of mail remind them of their trip by boat to post a very important letter. In the cubby under the stairs they come across the telescope, which reminds them of the time they picnicked in their secret cave.

And then they find the KITE!

With caps and scarfs and jackets to keep them warm in the wind they head out to the park at last!

The kite flew so high.

Granddad said, "Hold on tight!"

And well they should, as the wild wind lifts them up, along with all the other airborne kite flyers, into a carnival of kites--whale kites, clown kites, a gorilla kite, even a dragon kite. Boy and Granddad hitch a ride on the dragon as they struggle to hold on to the string. The boy drops it, but Granddad grabs him in time for them to ride the kite down, just as the sky darkens and lightning spikes! But luckily, the wind blows them back to their own doorstep, and inside, over a cozy cup of tea, the two watch as the storm crashes and flashes at the windows.

"The best adventure is an adventure shared," Granddad said.

And it's quite an adventure in Sam Usher's Storm (Seasons with Granddad) (Templar/Candlewick Books, 2018). With whimsical watercolor illustrations, the boy and his unflappable grandfather share another memorable escapade, the sort that grows in the telling. Any kid would love to have such shared adventures with such a grandfather to remember. Says Kirkus,"Usher's watercolor and ink illustrations and his shifting use of color, light, and shadow evokes peril excitement, and finally the security of the kitchen. Other books in the Seasons with Granddad series are Sun (Seasons with Granddad), Rain (Seasons with Granddad), and Snow (Seasons with Granddad).