Counting BirdsYoung readers will delight in recognising the subjects of this charming story, which leads us through a spring day deep in the countryside, from dawn to dusk. The day begins with a solitary cockerel's crow and the sunlight falling on two lovebirds in a cage and three china ducks on a wall. Swans, swallows, peacocks, geese, and starlings, each lovingly portrayed in Melvin's signature style, are among the many familiar birds that populate the pages.