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Shade of Wings

by Pam McGaffin

A crow family in a changing city

Regular price $16.47 USD
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AlbakiReads Editorial

A crow family in a changing city

Set in New York City during the 1999 West Nile virus outbreak, the novel brings the crisis into view through a family of crows. Duncan, the eldest, is expected to leave and find a mate, but a problem keeps him with his family. After his parents die, he takes responsibility for his siblings, including three fledglings, as the illness spreads among the birds. The account also touches on the human consequences of the outbreak, linking the crows’ struggle to a zoo pathologist’s concerns and the arrival of sick New Yorkers at hospitals. Its animal perspective connects family care and survival with the tensions of an epidemic affecting both wildlife and people.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Teens and young adults interested in speculative fiction.
  • Readers drawn to stories about animals and family responsibility.
  • Readers interested in a fictional account set during an epidemic affecting wildlife and people.

Themes

Animal family bondsCaregiving and responsibilityWildlife diseaseHuman-animal relations

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

For fans of Laline Paull, a speculative young adult novel about a family of New York City crows struggling to survive the outbreak of West Nile virus during the sizzling summer of 1999.

Four-year-old Duncan needs to hurry up and find a mate--or so says his sister, Cloud. But she doesn't know about the mistake that's preventing him from leaving their family to start another.

Though he's the eldest, Duncan doesn't see himself as a leader. Yet that's what he must become when both his parents die of the mysterious illness that's killing crows across New York City. He devotes himself to caring for his siblings, including three fledglings--but he soon discovers he can't protect them from the "blind death."

Meanwhile, a zoo pathologist's worst fears are realized. It starts with dead flamingos. Then critically ill New Yorkers start showing up in hospital emergency rooms.

Some blame the crows.
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