“The Longest Flight” book spreads
The Longest Flight is a narrative non-fiction book I’m developing, intended for ages 8–12.
Synopsis
Twelve-year-old Fareed and his ornithologist aunt Bulbul track the migration of a bird species called the bar-tailed godwit, as it flies non-stop from Alaska to New Zealand. It’s the longest continuous flight ever recorded—13,000 km without stopping, eating or sleeping, for 11 straight days over an unforgiving ocean. It’s a feat that is only possible thanks to amazing evolutionary adaptations and incredible determination.
While tracking the birds’ journey, Fareed and Bulbul uncover:
How ocean winds help the birds cross such a vast distance
How the birds’ organs shrink to make room for muscles and fat reserves
How their brain hemispheres take turns sleeping while the birds fly
How their eyes use quantum physics to find magnetic south
Expansive double-page spreads pit the birds against the awesome majesty of nature.
Those same forces of nature soon send the birds far off course and toward certain death. To survive, the godwits must use all their abilities and head for the last possible safe haven: Tasmania.
When they arrive, our human protagonists greet the birds with relief. Fareed and Bulbul discover the healing power of studying and caring for the creatures we share this world with.
Character sketches
AV7 (four months old): Our “hero” bird in this story is inspired by record-breaking birds tracked in several studies. Those birds were identified with alphanumeric codes like B6, E7, and 4BBRW. The letters in AV7’s name connote the “V” formation the birds fly in.
Fareed (12 years old): The name Fareed is inspired by Farid ud-din Attar, the medieval Islamic poet of The Conference of the Birds. In that fable, the birds of the world go on a gruelling journey to find their elusive king.
Bulbul (38 years old): The name Bulbul is inspired by the nightingale (bulbul in Persian). In Islamic poetry, the nightingale is a doomed lover forever singing for an unattainable beloved.