Bison and the Butterfly
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!
Alice Hemming is a children's author who has had over 50 books published in the UK and internationally, including the bestselling The Leaf Thief. Previously a librarian, she has written for reading schemes, and two of her books were selected for the National Library Summer Reading Challenge.
Nancy Leschnikoff (AKA Nancy Noodle Doodles) is an illustrator and designer specialising in children’s books. With a quirky sense of humour that translates into her artwork, she loves to work on projects that make children giggle. She is the illustrator of critically acclaimed Rosie Loves Jack and bestselling What's Happening to Me? Girls Edition. Her hand-drawn digital style, confident layout and typography skills, and bold approach to colour have led to a variety of projects in publishing and other design areas such as licensing, advertising, branding and packaging. She worked for 15 years as a Children’s Book Designer at Usborne Publishing, with a decade of this time spent at a Senior level, managing and overseeing the design of all manner of books for children. She lives in Kent with her family.