Description

Discover a powerful, evocative and urgent new young voice in nature writing

*WINNER OF THE SOMERSET MAUGHAM AWARD 2023*

‘Birdwatching has never felt like a hobby, or a pastime I can pick up and put down, but a thread running through the pattern of my life.’

Meet Mya-Rose – otherwise known as ‘Birdgirl’. Birder, environmentalist, diversity activist. To date she has seen over five thousand different types of bird: half the world’s species.

Every single bird a treasure. Each sighting a small step in her family journey – a collective moment of joy and stillness. And each helping her to find her voice.

Since she was young, she has visited every continent to pursue her passion, seeing first-hand the inequality and reckless destruction we are inflicting on our fragile planet. And the simple, mindful act of looking for birds has made her ever-more determined to campaign for all our survival.

This is her story; a journey defined by her love for these extraordinary creatures. Because large or small, brown, patterned or jewelled, there is something about birds that makes us, even for just moments at a time, lift our eyes away from our lives and up to the skies.

Birdgirl is the perfect read for fans of H is for Hawk, Diary of a Young Naturalist, and any young or aspiring environmentalists.

Publisher Review

Lyrical, poignant and insightful. — Margaret Atwood Mya-Rose Craig has done more than anyone to promote birding and environmental issues to young people from all backgrounds – especially women of colour – and deserves our admiration and praise. — Stephen Moss, author of THE ROBIN Mya-Rose’s passion and dedication for the causes she believes in are testament to what we humans can achieve when we are at our best. — Liz Bonnin