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Rating: 
Summary: AN IMAGINATIVE, AMUSING TALE
Review: With vibrantly enchanting illustrations the vaunted Mordicai Gerstein relates the surprising story of John Bardsley and the introduction of sparrows to America. It was the middle of the 19th century when Bardsley, like so many others, left his native land to find fortune in America. Philadelphia was his city of choice; house painting his work. To his amazement he found that his adopted city was literally crawling with inchworms. One of the little rascals even dove into his shirt, a tickling annoyance. Soon, the inchworms were devouring the leaves on bushes and trees. Birds that were native to Philadelphia, jays, wrens, robins, and thrushes didn't find the little wigglers appetizing. Even though people were hired to pick the inchworms off the trees it was a losing battle. No one had any idea what to do - except for Bardsley. He remembered the sparrows he had befriended when he was a boy in England, and believed that they could rid the city of inchworms. Off he went, across the ocean again, and seasick all the way. Yet, he was determined to bring his feathered friends to Philadelphia. Did the birds accompany him back to America? Did they save the city's greenery? You'll have to read this imaginative, amusing tale by the one and only Mordicai Gerstein to find out! - Gail Cooke
Rating:
Summary: AN IMAGINATIVE, AMUSING TALE
Review: With vibrantly enchanting illustrations the vaunted Mordicai Gerstein relates the surprising story of John Bardsley and the introduction of sparrows to America. It was the middle of the 19th century when Bardsley, like so many others, left his native land to find fortune in America. Philadelphia was his city of choice; house painting his work. To his amazement he found that his adopted city was literally crawling with inchworms. One of the little rascals even dove into his shirt, a tickling annoyance. Soon, the inchworms were devouring the leaves on bushes and trees. Birds that were native to Philadelphia, jays, wrens, robins, and thrushes didn't find the little wigglers appetizing. Even though people were hired to pick the inchworms off the trees it was a losing battle. No one had any idea what to do - except for Bardsley. He remembered the sparrows he had befriended when he was a boy in England, and believed that they could rid the city of inchworms. Off he went, across the ocean again, and seasick all the way. Yet, he was determined to bring his feathered friends to Philadelphia. Did the birds accompany him back to America? Did they save the city's greenery? You'll have to read this imaginative, amusing tale by the one and only Mordicai Gerstein to find out! - Gail Cooke
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