Kestrel

A young boy helps his grandfather to build a boat “for a boy for his birthday” – something he longs for himself but which has been refused because he is too young.
The simple, poetic text is entirely made up of the grandfather’s comments to the boy as they build the boat, and in the end, of course, the boat turns out to be for the boy’s birthday, when he is no longer too young. The boy finds that sharing the experience with his grandfather makes receiving the gift infinitely more special. The message is a life-affirming one of the pleasure of secrets, of sharing, of working together, of giving and receiving.