The Bison and the Butterfly - Alice Hemming | Nancy Leschnikoff

A touching ecosystem story about friends in nature and the nature of friendship, by the bestselling author of The Leaf Thief.

Produced in collaboration with Kent Wildlife Trust’s bison rewilding project, this is the heartwarming story of Bison and her forest friends.

Bison feels very sad and lonely. She’s big and hairy, and sometimes a bit clumsy… and she doesn’t know why anybody would want to be her friend. But wise woodpecker knows that everybody likes different things, and that the other animals probably feel a lot differently than she imagines.

Soon enough, as Bison eats her breakfast, has her bath and does her – ahem – business, she meets many different creatures who love her exactly because of her big, shaggy ways.

As well as celebrating these differences, this enchantingly illustrated book explains to children, in terms that they can relate to, how the different animals within an ecosystem work in harmony and benefit one another, and the power of rewilding to shape these relationships.

Behind this sweet rewilding tale is the Kent Wildlife Trust’s Wilder Blean Bison Project, which has re-introduced three bison into woodland in Canterbury. The book includes a section explaining the science behind rewilding, and shows that, no matter who we are and what we like, we are all worthy of friendship and have a part to play… whether that’s in our ecosystem or personal community!