Birds of many feathers flock together for a special Christmas mission in this inviting picture book. Hayles's (Beach Play) evocative, airy imagery gives wing to her rhyming verse about mother birds flying to Bethlehem ("They journeyed on/ From field to pond/ In clouds of graying cold./ Beyond the trees,/ Then out to sea/ Aloft on heaven's breath"). Reaching the stable, they fashion a soft and snug feather "nest" for the baby Jesus. Pons's (He Saves the Day) sunny watercolors, featuring a delicately variegated palette, offer a sweetly anthropomorphized bird's-eye view of the proceedings. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)
