January 10 – National Save the Eagle Day

Happy Eagle Day!

Little Eagle written and illustrated by Chen Jiang Hong (2007)

One night, long ago in ancient China, Master Yang found a young boy sleeping in the snow. He covered the boy with his coat and took him home. The boy had lost his parents when they refused to obey the cruel General Zhao. So Master Yang became the boy’s guardian. The boy woke one night to see Mater Yang practicing boxing moves. He copied, practiced, and learned all the movements in secrets. When Master Yang found out what the boy had learned and that he wanted to learn more, he took him to the mountains, to a secret temple. The boy was named Little Eagle,  his head was shaven, and his training began. Many years later, Little Eagle was equal to his master. Master Yang told him their enemy General Zhao would attack that night. He wanted the book that Master Yang had supposedly written giving the secrets of Eagle boxing. That night, Master Yang was wounded and knew he would die. He took Little Eagle aside and told him there was no book of secrets written, only Little Eagle knew the secrets of Eagle boxing. Now it was up to Little Eagle to protect the secrets, respect them, and always use them for good.

The Bald Eagle written by Norman Pearl and illustrated by Matthew Skeens (2002)

This is a great non-fiction for early readers featuring cartoon-like illustrations instead of photographs, making it more inviting to many young children. The topics covered include The National Emblem, The Eagle and the Turkey, Symbol of Freedom, In the Wild, Protecting Bald Eagles, and  Coming Back.

The Eagle and the Wren written by Jane Goodall and illustrated by Alexander Reichstein (2000)

All the birds of the earth argued about who could fly the highest. Finally the wise owl decided they should conduct a contest to see which bird could fly the highest. One by one, all the other birds grew tired and had to return to earth. Soon only the majestic eagle was left soaring high in the sky. Just as he grew tired and was ready to return to earth, he felt something move in his feathers. There was a tiny wren who had stowed away on the eagle’s back. The wren flew higher than the eagle and saw more than he ever thought he would ever see. The two birds returned to the earth together and the wren thanked the eagle for helping him reach heights he could not have reached on his own. They told their story and the owl praised both of them for setting a new record. Using both strength and determination with dreaming and a quick brain, they flew higher than any bird had ever flown before.