Agnes Peregrine, bird caller extraordinaire and her victorian bird-watching mama are off on a trip to the far Himalayas, in search of a rare pink-headed duck. Look out for the dastardly Colonel Pittsnap, Agnes! He means to make the journey perilous.

Great, steampunky sensibility and wonderful silly words and noises to read aloud! ( )

The bird species are true, but I, personally, cannot stand Potter's illustrations, and the story was meh.?á Bonus star for the hero and her mother not needing a male to enable their adventures, or their defeat of the bad guy.?á Bonus star for teaching kids the vocabulary word ornithology.?á Star off (imo) for the fantasy that birds will come when called as described in the climax to this story.

Btw, this is less for tots, and more for 6-8 year-olds. ( )

Agnes and her mother, Professor Peregrine, are on a quest to the Himalayas to spot that most elusive of birds, the rare pink-headed duck. But watch out for Colonal Pittsnap, who plans to use Agnes's talent for calling birds to his own nefarious purposes! ( )

My 4-year-old son loves this book. He wants Santa Clause to bring him his own copy for Christmas. We enjoyed the bird pictures and descriptions on the inside covers of the book, and the bird song throughout. I enjoyed the animal-rights message conveyed: if you love animals, set them free and protect them; don't shoot them and hang them on your wall like oily Colonel Pittsnap. ( )