When the Little Tern Cannot Fly: A Modern Fable of Survival

Author: Lisa Mantelkes
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-03-01
Features: Authentically recommended by renowned writers such as Shu Ting, Haruki Murakami, and Hiroshi Kashiwagi, inspiring every heart in adversity! The Publishers Weekly of the United States praises it as: A fresh spiritual gift, a book of hope to overcome setbacks! A book that is quite moving in every aspect! Not only does it have beautiful illustrations, but it is also an excellent gift book in all respects, and the best hope book for us when we face despair and frustration! Dedicated to those who are troubled by their inability to fly and to friends who suddenly find themselves unable to take off. The tiny skua that cannot fly did not have in its heart a burning desire to rise or a will to strive, like a flame, but rather a world filled with melancholy. This should be a story of a setback conqueror. -- Hiroshi Kashiwagi (Renowned Japanese writer, Japanese translator of When the Skua Cannot Fly) I would like to dedicate this profound little book to the most important friends in my life. -- Haruki Murakami (Renowned Japanese writer) The new generation of young people in Japan should learn from the Skua That Cannot Fly how to face life's setbacks. The skua has a small red beak and a tuft of white wedge-shaped feathers on its forehead, which matches its pair of slender, long wings and deeply forked tail very well. Its legs are short, its feet small, and its slender body allows it to perform various high-difficulty aerial maneuvers freely, like a dazzling solo. Most of its time is spent in the sky, either gliding or swooping, enjoying infinite freedom above the sea, rivers, and lakes. However, such a body cannot stay on the ground for too long. In fact, it is just a fleeting visitor on land; its home is the sky above. But one day, the skua suddenly discovers that it has lost its ability to fly, and its life instantly becomes meaningless. It is abandoned by its companions on the desolate coast and lives alone in solitude. Can not flying mean that it is no longer a bird? Loneliness and confusion are part of life; loss may be the beginning of a spark of hope! Facing the unique challenges of life, the skua embarks on a lonely spiritual journey. Finally, on the days that follow, the skua stranded on the beach, under the guidance of its friends—the purple flowers and the small crabs—discovers something it had always ignored while flying: its shadow. And only a bird that has landed can discover its own shadow......