PUFFLING PATROL  by Ted Lewin, author, and Betsy Lewin, artist.

Take a most unusual trip with Ted and Betsy Lewin to a group of islands off the coast of Iceland where thousands of puffins spend their summer raising their chicks.  These chicks are called pufflings. The problem part is that the pufflings – once grown – must go to sea.  The fun part is that the children of the islands – the Puffling Patrol – help the pufflings do just that.

As you can imagine, Iceland is cold, even in August when the parent puffins fly away for the winter. The “adolescent” pufflings must fend for themselves. Many of them fly into town rather than out to sea.  The reader is invited to follow along with the children as part of the Puffling Patrol and help rescue reluctant birds. The reader meets the twins, Erna and Dáni, who find a wayward puffling, take it home for the night and then visit the natural history museum’s rescue station the next day. However, rescuing a puffling is not simple and makes for many funny situations.

Wonderfully vibrant, detailed and expressive, the book’s illustrations capture the Icelandic landscape, from the windswept coastlines to the urban home life of the children – and, of course, the birds themselves. This is a book of few words, many surprises, and amazing illustrations.

Lee & Low, 2013