White Owl, Barn Owl

Debra Leigh narrates this iconographic-animated adaptation of zoologist and author Nicola Davies' 2007 picture book White Owl, Barn Owl, featuring illustrations by Michael Foreman, aimed at ages 4-8. With a frosty winter approaching, a young girl accompanies her grandpa one day to place a nest box for a barn owl (gramps has noticed the telltale “sausage-shaped blobs” of owl pellets). Even though there are no guarantees that the pair will attract a wild animal “pet,” they wait for something to claim the box…and are eventually rewarded with a bird whose “face was like a pearly heart,” arriving with a mate and squabbling baby owlets. Also featuring a “Did You Know?” segment with owl facts (owls have hollow bones, hatch up to six eggs at once, etc.), as well as “A Nest Box Note” with tips on building your own barn owl nest (patience not included), this informative children's title is recommended. Aud: K, E, P. (J. Williams-Wood)