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Julia Donaldson's New Book: A Fairy Tale of Birdsong
11 Mar
Summary
- Donaldson's latest book features a girl who can communicate with birds.
- The story, inspired by a Scottish tale, includes extensive bird research.
- The book's beautiful illustrations are by Catherine Rayner.

Acclaimed author Julia Donaldson has released her latest children's book, "The Magic Feather," on Thursday. The book tells the story of a young girl who finds a magical feather that allows her to speak with birds.
Donaldson drew inspiration from a traditional Scottish tale with a similar premise for "The Magic Feather." She shared that she dedicated significant time to researching various bird species, their unique noises, and their names, making the book feel like a fairy story. The author completed the story in Sussex in 2024.
Illustrations for the book were provided by Catherine Rayner, whose work Donaldson described as "absolutely beautiful." This marks another collaboration between the two, following their 2019 book, "The Go-Away Bird." Rayner's artistic contributions differ from Donaldson's long-standing partnership with Axel Scheffler, known for illustrating "The Gruffalo" and "Room on the Broom."



