Horn Book Review
After a "wishingbird" grants Tico golden wings, the other birds turn against him for being different. Tico gives away his feathers, gaining regular black ones in their place. In this reissue the art has been completely restored, and the colors are once again crisp and vibrant. Tico's wings are printed with metallic gold ink so his feathers shimmer just as they should. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
Young Naomi hears that something strange is going on in the stable: three jewel-bedecked men have visited there. She decides to spy. She sees a baby and a woman, but she doesn't see the man who grabs her as she tries to steal from a pile of golden coins. When the father realizes Naomi is only a child, however, he feeds her and introduces her to his baby, who grabs her finger. Now, she says, she has been caught twice, the second time in her heart. When the family leaves, the father gives Naomi a flute. The music she makes brings her both emotional and financial sustenance, and the memory of the child touches her life forever. It's good to see a girl at the center of a Nativity story for a change, though the paintings are sometimes overly dramatic, and the baby Jesus looks so ordinary, children may wonder at the holiness Naomi experiences when he touches her. Otherwise, this has an appealing gentleness and evokes a transcendent feeling that captures the Christmas spirit.--Cooper, Ilene Copyright 2007 Booklist
