
On a bright summer morning, a pair of seasoned robins discuss the time has come for their five fledglings to leave the snug nest and learn to find food on their own. Their modest garden, with early potatoes and worm‑rich soil, has become a hard‑won banquet, and the parents are growing thin from the endless flights. The story opens with a gentle, if melancholy, conversation about the natural cycle of growth and the bittersweet duty of letting go.
When the young birds finally tumble out, a chaotic scramble erupts as each sibling claims the best perch, and the smallest brother, Robinette, barely manages to steady himself on a low branch. His mother watches anxiously, offering quiet counsel about avoiding cats and keeping his feathers dry, while the father attempts to restore order among the quarrelling brood. Listeners are drawn into the tender blend of family drama and the harsh lessons of the wild, setting the stage for the fledglings' first steps toward independence.
Language
en
Duration
~47 minutes (45K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Release date
2008-03-31
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

A hard-driving Los Angeles crime reporter who broke barriers in American journalism, she became one of the first women to run a city desk at a major metropolitan daily. Her life story moves from a difficult childhood into decades of headline-making newspaper work.
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