A beautiful gem of a book: the artwork is meticulous and charming, beginning with a tall wooden house in the Swiss Alps, with shutters, set on a tall, stone foundation. The prose, too: with names like Creak and Croak for the crows, and Cutpurse and Pickpocket for the magpies and the family's concern for the welfare of the bird family in the Barberry Bush; the hominess of the family's clothing, their activities during the varied seasons. I especially love the scene of the house in the snow with it's red and gold-lighted windows. I can see why this artist is so collectible. The delicacy of his(?) work can never be replicated by computers! ( )