A magpie who is confused by homonyms gifts the wrong items to her friends. For example, she gives her baseball-loving friend an animal bat instead of a sports bat. Her friends are upset at first until they realize they can put the gifts to good use. This imparts messages about the sentiments behind gift-giving and creatively using various items. I absolutely loved the scrap art on each page, which I’ve never seen in a picture book before. I read this via NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher.

I would use this in an Art class in an instant, which is a natural thought considering how funky cool and resourceful these characters are made from recycled goods.

However!

I would also use it as a perspective piece/ perspectives lesson in companionship with the beautifully twisted 'Fox' by Margaret Wild (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2651521-fox). I have taught Fox multiple times and it always ensnares my students and fosters dynamic discussion.

I could see these two books Gifts of the Magpie and Fox being super dynamic together. They both have clear perspective themes, misunderstandings, enigmatic art you crave looking at closely, and a spunky Magpie character at the crux of it all. Huh, I'm not going to lie, I'm delighted by my own idea for this lesson... it sounds great to me!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Found art photography is brought to creative life! This book has a two-fold message - to appreciate the things you are given because they may have a use you never expect, and there is beauty in all objects! This book is a great read-aloud for lovers of "dad jokes" - the puns are strong with this one! Try out the activity in the final pages for a creativity challenge!

I really enjoyed this book, it was a little quirky and that made it stand out from the crowd!

I liked the images and the scarp items and things that the magpie collects as the story goes, I will be honest and to start I didn’t like then but as the book progressed they really do suit the story.

I loved that the Magpie was always a little out there with his gifts and the case of the pig wanting a pen, but not the type of pen the Magpie gave – it is also a good way to show that some words can be more than one thing too which gave us a giggle!

It is 4 stars from me for this one, I love books like this –highly recommended!

This book is fab! I loved the illustrations, which are all made using scrap items such as old tools, bits of metal and other junk. The children at school will love having a go at creating their own animals. The story features a magpie, who tries to cheer up the other animals by finding solutions to their problems but always gets it wrong, for example, by bringing the hog a pen to write with when he actually asked for a pen to live in. This word play is great fun and children will enjoy coming up with their own mistakes for the magpie.

One animal's garbage is another animal's gift.

'Gifts of the Magpie' follows a magpie who takes things too literal!. Although, you know how the saying goes... be careful what you wish for!

It has beautiful illustrations and laugh out loud moments.

gifts of the magpie is so clever and creative. The story was funny with how each wish was granted. The artwork is brilliant- I also lived the tips fornl scrapers in the back. This would be a fun storytime and activity for kids.

So much to love about this book. The Author uses a Magpie as the main character which are known to collect things. The Magpie collects items for its frie do but they are always the wrong item, for example, the the owl asks for glasses and the magpie brings her drinking glasses instead of eyeglasses. There are many other humorous homonyms used throughout the book. The friends are disappointed at first in their gifts but after some critical thinking they find they are just what they needed. The illustrations are photographs of scrap metal art that creatively depict each character. A great story and creative depiction.

The Gift of the Magpie is an adorable, creative book for children. I think children will enjoy this book, especially children who are old enough to recognize the “errors” the Magpie makes. Smaller children and ESL learners may need a little more support understanding the story. That’s not a bad thing though.

The elementary teacher in me immediately jumps to possible classroom uses of this book. This would be a great book to teach children about homonyms (which can be confusing). This book could definitely be use to get students thinking about other homonyms they know. They could even try writing their own page and using found objects to create art.

I also liked the ending message about mistakes. I think children will be able to relate.

I would share this with students or with my nieces and nephews.

Thank-you netgalley, Sam Hundley, and Capstone Editions for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this book. All thoughts and opinions are mine.

This might not really be worth five stars, but it's certainly a lot closer to that than it is to four. We get a generous magpie, that thinks it's expert at finding and giving to its friends just what they want, but always gets it completely wrong. Until… So this has word-play, a decent message that isn't one that crops up every month in the world of such books, and the art accompanying the whole thing is also of much note. We're in the world of rostrum photography – a top-down, vertical look down at the design board, where found objects and scrap metal have been arranged to create the animal forms. So a cute story, a witty approach to everything, and the visuals that just demand someone has a go themselves (look out for sharp edges, mind) makes for three surprises for me, in a book that really does work. Smart magpies might just give out copies of this.

A cute little story of a Magpie that just wants to help all her friends, but keeps delivering the wrong gifts. The artwork is both really cool, and slightly terrifying! The use of scrap art worked well for the story and I liked how there's a note about it at the end that tells kids how to make their own scrap art.

This book has to do with the use of homonyms. The author uses the homonyms in a way that is easily understandable to the child reading the book because he gives various samples throughout. Another great thing behind the book is the use of old metal parts to create the animals. Not only is this book teaching homonyms but also teaches children about the importance of recycling. Furthermore it includes friendship in the book which is always a good theme. The magpie turns a mistake into a solutions which also teaches children it is okay to make mistakes. This book I believe could very easily tie into different lesson plans and I believe is perfect for elementary level learning. Also the images throughout the book are beautiful and are actually made by the author.