What a lovely book! “Once, a Bird” by Rina Singh and Nathalie Dion is a wordless picture book for children that adults will also love. We follow a little robin as it flies across different landscapes, finally settling in a tree outside an apartment building to build its nest. The people in the building become very interested in it, and this brings them out into nature. The illustrations are absolutely gorgeous, simple and yet detailed enough to keep small children busy looking. The people in the building reflect our world in their diversity so that children of all skin colors will see themselves in this story. Adults will enjoy turning the pages as they share this tale with children, one which can be created together due to the wordless pages.

Thank you @NetGalley and @orcabook for letting me read this in exchange for an honest review.

I shared this book with my class of 3rd graders. They have never "read" a wordless picture book, so they found it challenging. After explaining the "why" of it, their minds opened up and they had an easier time visualizing text. We agreed the the illustrations are great and it was neat how things slowly changed over time. They also said this would be a great book for beginning readers because they could "read" it.

A beautiful gem of a book that, without words, shares a relatable story for those children who have been stuck at home due to illness or are still coping with the effects of lockdowns. Detailed, gorgeous illustrations make the story pleasing to the eye and the pacing is easy to follow. Good to start SEL conversations or elicit empathetic responses from children. A great addition for any lower grades classroom and/or school library.

Once A Bird, by Rina Singh, illustrated by Nathalie Dion is a wordless picture book, which lends its readers the freedom to creatively imagine the lines, the words and the thoughts. This beautifully illustrated book without any words, very vividly delves into how a bird explores a new town and neighborhood to make it a home.
Adjusting to life changes can be challenging, the book, once a bird gives away a colossal thought that seasons will change, but life should move on.
The book gives its readers a chance to transcribe their own thoughts, as they watch the little bird set up his new home yet again. This book gives its readers a chance to connect with the bird, and in turn relate to the nature and the natural world around us, to look for inspiration in times of contemplation.
Its a great addition to libraries and the book shelves as it will spark creativity.

Winter is just turning to spring as a bird wings its way above town. The streets, playgrounds, and parks are all empty until a lovely song warbled by our feathered friend reminds everyone that it's time to venture outside.

This is a lovely wordless picture book, with gorgeous illustrations.

What a beautiful look at man's connections with nature, and the hope for better days.

2.5 stars, rounded up.

This wordless picture book has gentle, soft illustrations. The bird flies around above empty streets and empty places, and after it lands in a tree, homebound people see it through their windows. This is evidently about the pandemic, but the depiction of completely empty highways and completely abandoned public places still isn't really accurate, and there's no real story, message, or point.

The illustrations are really pretty, and this book may help people process their pandemic experiences, thinking about the way that nature was extra meaningful to them while they were in lockdown. Still, this doesn't make much sense as a children's picture book, and there needed to be more of an actual story for me to rate this higher.

I was not expecting a book without words. The images were beautiful and my children enjoyed talking about the bird, what It was doing, and what those around it were doing.

Once, a Bird by by Rina Singh and Nathalie Dion (Orca Book Publishers, September 2023) is a gorgeously illustrated wordless picture book that takes readers on a journey through the eyes of a bird in search of a place to settle and build a nest. The watercolor and gouache illustrations capture the bird’s perspective as it observes a town from above.

However, I couldn’t help but feel a little lost in terms of finding a cohesive story. The initial scenes inexplicably lack cars, people, or action as the bird looks down from the sky. While the bird eventually finds a tree outside an apartment building for nest-building, the interactions with the residents felt limited. Some people watch the bird build a nest, others enjoy its song, and children pass by the tree, witnessing the bird’s journey from hatching eggs to teaching them to fly.

Although Once, a Bird falls short in terms of character development and a compelling storyline, its strongest aspect lies in its visually captivating illustrations. The artwork beautifully portrays the bird’s flight and its eventual nesting spot, as well as the joy the building’s occupants find in listening to the bird’s song. While I hoped for more depth and engagement from the narrative, the book’s artistic presentation is undeniably its standout feature.

While it may not have a pressing storyline, as a wordless book, Once, A Bird encourages children to create their own narratives as they observe each page. They can explore the sounds, feelings, and perspectives that each of the images evoke. Thought it may not be an ideal material for a read aloud, it has the potential to inspire children in their own storytelling endeavors. Teachers or homeschool parents may want to consider using Once, A Bird as an elementary-level writing prompt.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance review copy of this book provided by the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is a wonderful wordless picture book. The images are beautiful and allow for the reader to create their own narrative. This is a great book for all ages. #OnceABird #NetGalley

Once, a Bird is a very sweet no-words picture book for ages 3-5. Because this has no words, this is better either as solo reading for a child or an opportunity for solo/collaborate storytelling with the parent or child. I struggled a little bit reading it to my 2-year old as I'm not the most imaginative storyteller, but the art is great, and I would enjoy reading/telling it together when he's a little older and would recommend for the intended age range.

Thanks to Orca Book Publishers and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Though it doesn’t have words, I found this book to be very moving. It tells a story, even without text. The illustrations are beautiful. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this title.

4.5/5, rounded up to 5

What a stunningly illustrated book! It is truly beautiful to follow the little bird through his travels. This would be great in a classroom or family story time to promote creativity and let kids help narrate the story with no words. I would frame some of this illustrations and put them In my house-- they are so beautiful!

'Once, a Bird' by Rina Singh and Nathalie Dion prove that not all stories need words. Page after page of beutiful illustrations share the story of a robin looking for a suitable place to nest. Pre-readers and parents will love to explore the pages together. And, for those of us lucky enough to have robins as frequent visitors, it is a gentle reminder to slow down and watch them work. Lovely.

Despite there being no words, I still felt connected to our little robin. His journey after the winter was cute to follow and reminding us all to take a moment to appreciate nature. The world is loud and busy, but little robin can take a moment to be quiet and we all can too. The pictures were so beautiful as well, the drawing style worked great for this.

This was a very gorgeous wordless book! It tells the story very clearly despite there being no words, and the illustrations are gorgeous!

Published: 09/12/23

Thank you NetGalley and Orca Book Publishers for accepting my request to read and review Once, a Bird.

Umm. This reads like a short film. It is illustrations only. They are nice.

The overall experience has left me stymied. There are no words or direction.

It's a pretty flip through picture book that I cannot imagine a child be interested in.

When I asked my daughter what she liked about this she said “all of it!”

This text-free book is perfect for pre-readers who still like a little independence. It gives a glimpse into the life of a Robin flying through the cities and countryside and ultimately settling down next to an apartment building, to the delight of its residents. Beautifully-illustrated!

This is such a cute book. It's a wordless picture book with beautiful illustration. This would make a great book for a kids library.

A beautiful, heartwarming story told only through stunning illustrations. A wordless story that could be used in so many ways in the homeschool or classroom and storytelling settings. With some text before the story to help adults ;)

Very cute and wonderfully illustrated book. I read this with my daughter and we had fun creating our own story, since it’s wordless. We read it once just looking at the pages and then discussed what we thought the people and the bird was thinking. Great book to read as a family!