Two young sisters find a man in the woods near the French home. The war is raging not too far away, and he is a deserter from the English army. He is cold, wet, and hungry; something is wrong with his eyes; and he is trying to make it home to his sickly younger brother before the boy dies. The girls are touched by the young man’s plight. Coco, the younger sister, is also captivated by his talisman—a tiny silver donkey. Thrilled to have such a tremendous secret, the girls smuggle the young man food. In gratitude, he tells them stories, tales of wise, gentle donkeys that also touch on the cruelty of persecution and the tragedy of war. Determined to help the young man get home, the sisters finally enlist the aide of their older brother in Sonya Hartnett’s tender and lyrical story. Set during World War I Hartnett’s narrative is a testament to purity and goodness in many forms, as well as an artful indictment of the terrible waste of war. (Ages 10–13)

From extraordinary novelist Sonya Hartnett comes a gently told fable of a lost soldier, heroic children, and a steadfast donkey.



One morning in the woods of World War I France, two young sisters stumble upon an astonishing find — a soldier, temporarily blinded by war, who has walked away from battle longing to see his gravely ill younger brother. Soon the care of the soldier becomes the girls' preoccupation, but it's not just the secret they share that emboldens them to steal food and other comforting items for the man. They are fascinated by what he holds in his hand — a tiny silver donkey. As the girls and their brother devise a plan for the soldier's safe passage home, he repays them by telling four wondrous tales about the humble donkey — from the legend of Bethlehem to a myth of India, from a story of rescue in war to a tale of family close to the soldier's heart. Sonya Hartnett explores rich new territory in this inspiring tale of kindness, loyalty, and courage.