(Thanks, Daniel Levy for the book trailer!)
I have always been fascinated with crows, since I was a little girl. I loved to watch them in the cornfields from the bus window on the way to school. Whether they were playing in updrafts on a windy day, feeding their ever-growing giant chicks, or fussing at intruders from high perches, they were constants in my daily life. When I moved to the city, I was happy to find so many urban crows to watch and wonder about. In honor of them, I wrote and illustrated Crows: An Egg-to-Sky Story, published by Muddy Boots Publishing, an imprint of Globe Pequot.
GIVEAWAY: And to celebrate, I would like to give a copy away! Enter a comment below, or on the corresponding Facebook or Instagram posts–tell me if you have had a favorite crow encounter. Your name will be entered for a drawing on July 9, and I will send a book to the winner! US and Canada only, please.
“Heavy outlining and decorative borders give this detailed lifecycle story by Peot the feel of an illustrated manuscript. Each spread marks a stage of crow upbringing. Male crows court females, mates build nests together (lined with “soft grasses, moss, or fine bark strips”), and eggs are laid, warmed, and hatched. Unexpected crow trivia abounds: older siblings often return to help the parents care for chicks, and when fledglings land on the ground, crows work together to mob would-be predators. At last, fledglings fly and then roost, and the cycle begins anew. Two additional sections and a bibliography conclude this close-up view of intimate moments in a crow family’s life. Ages 6–9.”
― Publishers Weekly
Crows: An Egg to Sky Story is available to purchase at Barnes and Noble, Amazon and wherever books are sold.
My impression with a crow is from fables when I was little. Crow and fox, and how a crow use his brain to get water out of a long neck walk. Anyway, the stories portrayed them as smart. But on the contrary, crow means omen in Chinese culture. If you saw a crow when you go out for business, it indicates no luck. Very controversial!
Interesting!I had an Aesop’s Fables collection when I was little that I read until it fell apart. There were lots of stories about that smart crow! Smart and kind of naughty, too. But I had no idea that crows were a bad omen in Chinese culture. Do you know the crow augury poem? One for sorrow, two for mirth, three for a death, four for a birth, five for silver, six for gold, seven for a secret never to be told. So, the saying goes, if you see crows in groups, they augur fortune or famine, etc., depending on how many you see together.
I fed Crows at work for years as they had a nest where I used to park. I would leavefood in the AM and thenat 430 when I would leave. I love their smart ways and the way they recognize those that are crow lovers. I now feed them at home as I am retired. I feed them here They are such brainy birds, I love their calls and love that the young are blue eyed at birth. I have many treasures they have left me a penny a screw. a kids barette. an acorn and a penny always in the same spot. Ay work they would wait for me at the lamp post and follow me. I love them and have many pictures of crows and prints. They give me such great joy and I amso glad that corvids are in the world. Your book is so beautiful.
Oh! How neat that you received gifts! I only received gifts once–I was very pregnant, and had walked up to a terrace with linden trees on it in a park in our neighborhood. There was a trio of crows I watched and recognized there. They were stripping the lindens for the soft bark strands they used in their nests. After I sat there for awhile, they started dropping linden bark strands on me–like they were saying “Don’t just sit there! Go home and work on your nest!” I still have the bark in a jar.
When I was a young child a crow lived in our neighborhood and visited our home daily in the summer. One day as I walked up our driveway he absolutely greeted me from the tree branch above with what sounded like, “Hello.” I was enchanted. Now we have numerous crows visit us daily in the sheep pastures as they love the ewe feed we treat the sheep to every other day. I love to see their return every spring. Congratulations on the new book; it looks beautiful.
Thank you! I completely believe that your crow greeted you. They DO see us and are very smart–I think they do develop a relationship with what they like and are familiar with.
I am 81 years old. My family lived next door to my grandparents. My grandmother would come over each morning and braid my hair. She had to leave school after first or second grade to help her family like a lot of children in that generation. I thought we were rich because we had our own pencil sharpener. She could read and would come over and borrow one volume at a time of our World Book set. After a while, she would return it and get another book. Often, she would say “Crow non thon, be you Gus, alley Ca-thon-eo.” I like crows and collect the pictures of them that I find — especially those in pen and ink. Whenever I see a crow, real or in a book, I repeat “Crow non thon… and think of my grandmother.
Just yesterday we saw crows eating a squirrel roadkill. I didn’t know they are meat eaters. The vultures came after the crows were done. In the end, there was just the fur left. Nature’s way of processing the dead is fascinating to me.
My HS art teacher (who recently passed) told me that in Costa Rica it is said that vultures are the holiest birds bc they fly closest to the heavens and yet clean up the Earth. I thought that was neat. And in lore, crows are said to be messengers between this world and the spirit world.
We lived next door to my grandparents. My grandmother would come over each morning and braid my hair. She had to leave school after first or second grade to help her family like a lot of children in that generation. She could read and would come over and borrow one volume at a time of our World Book set. After a while, she would return it and get another book. Often, she would say “Crow non thon, be you Gus, alley Ca-thon-eo. Sometimes, she would say, “Chickima, chickima, craneyma Crow, Went to the well to wash his toe.” Every time I see a crow (for real or in a book), I think of my grandmother and repeat both of these. Whether because of these quotes or not, I like to draw and paint crows, and I cut out or draw the crows I see in articles and books for inspiration.
I love these–I had not heard of them. Do you know the crow augury poem? I wrote it in reply to Shuling’s comment below. It is sometimes for magpies.
My brother had a crow, his name was Blackjack. Blackjack passed. Tears were shed. My brother passed. More tears were shed. Now, when I see a crow, I see my brother and Blackjack. Their spirits entwined both free to fly.
As an owner of an animal sanctuary, I can attest that crows are simply wonderful – thank you for taking the time to write about them –
That’s really neat–what animals do you have there? Do you get to work with corvids?
My husband and I live in an old brick warehouse in a small West Virginia town, catty-cornered from a gorgeous old freight depot that is frequently used as a backdrop for photographers.Most of the time, our street is quiet, save for a couple of crows that have learned to yell for food just outside our front loading dock. I was working at my desk when I heard their insistent cawing, so I gathered their food (braunschweiger balls and a few handfuls of shelled peanuts), then opened the door and immediately tossed the food into the parking area–which is when I saw there was a photoshoot going on for vintage-looking motorcycles. The cameraman told me they’d had to stop filming their commercial because the birds wouldn’t shut up, but now he realized they were just placing their breakfast order.
Ha ha!I love this story!
The winner of the giveaway drawing (picked by a random number generator) is Karin Patton!! Congratulations!