• Age: 4 to 7
• Grade: k to 2
• Reading age: 4 to 7

Two lonely souls find each other in this unusual tale of friendship and belonging from award-winning comic writer Cary Fagan featuring vibrant art by Banafsheh Erfanian.

Is there someone out there for everyone? Two lonely souls find each other in this unusual tale of friendship and belonging from award-winning comic writer Cary Fagan. In her North American debut, illustrator Banafsheh Erfanian brings ornate artistry to the cage and birds that inhabit this surprisingly human story.

A long-empty birdcage takes a chance and leaves behind its attic home to find a bird to keep. Out in the world, the cage encounters many birds and offers shelter to each of them. One by one, they refuse, explaining why they belong elsewhere. The cage feels lonelier than ever – until the cage in search of a bird finds a bird in search of a cage.

Based on an aphorism by Franz Kafka, Fagan’s original story will make readers laugh at its absurdity and ponder its meaning long after they finish reading.

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.3
With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7
Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

Cary Fagan is the author of eight previous novels and five books of short stories, including The Student, Great Adventures for the Faint of Heart, and A Bird's Eye. He has been nominated for the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the Writers' Trust Fiction Award, the Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction, and has won the Toronto Book Award and the Canadian Jewish Book Award for Fiction. He is also an acclaimed writer of books for children, having won the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, the IODE Jean Throop Book Award, a Mr. Christie Silver Medal, the Joan Betty Stuchner—Oy Vey!—Funniest Children's Book Award, and the Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People. Fagan's work has been translated into French, Italian, German, Dutch, Spanish, Catalan, Turkish, Russian, Polish, Chinese, Korean and Persian. He still lives in his hometown of Toronto.

Cary Fagan's profile page

BANAFSHEH ERFANIAN was born in Tehran, Iran. She graduated from Tehran University of Art with a bachelor in graphic design and a master’s in illustration. Banafsheh has illustrated more than twenty books and magazines, and written more than twenty-five articles in art reviews. She has exhibited her work in Iran, Italy, US, Canada, Moscow, Japan and Belgrade. She has won prizes such as the 1st prize of the Second Festival of Text Books Illustration, Iran, and the encouragement prize of the 15th Noma Concours for Picture Book Illustration, Japan. She teaches painting and illustration in Iran and Canada. She lives in Toronto.

Banafsheh Erfanian's profile page

An original and thought-provoking exploration of the rhythms of friendship.

Kirkus, STARRED REVIEW

A lovely storytime or lapsit selection for deep thinkers and connection-makers.

School Library Journal

A literal interpretation of a famous quote provides the heart of a whimsical story about two lonely souls seeking friendship. … Boldly illustrated in a folk art–style with acrylic and oil pastel, the pages are a riot of saturated colors.

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