A Gift from the Birds — Caroline Stills

Birds can save people’s lives. You may think that’s a strange thing to say. How can a small animal with wings save a person? But I know they can. It happened to me. When Millie was nine years old her mum got sick, very sick. And now, on the night of Millie’s tenth birthday party, things are getting serious. Millie sits on the back step of her house, worried and upset, and two shiny black crows fly into the yard, catching her attention. Do they just want some of the cheeseburger she’s attempting to eat? Or are they visiting for some other reason? Before long Millie starts to find mysterious objects in the garden. And the crows are often there when she comes home from school. What are they trying to tell her? And can they help her as she faces losing her mum? Caroline Stills’s debut novel, A Gift from the Birds, is a sensitive, heartfelt story about loss and grief, and finding comfort in unexpected places. Caroline Stills is the author of a number of acclaimed picture books for children. She won the 2024 Text Prize for A Gift from the Birds, her first novel for middle grade readers. Caroline lives in the Dandenong Ranges, east of Melbourne, with her family. carolinestills.com