Elizabeth Hopkinson's Hidden Grove

Following on from my last blog about bird lore, I came across a piece of artwork on Twitter (ironic!) that seemed to conjure up the spirit of Tammo ( the bird charmer character in my work-in-progress the Angelio Trilogy ) perfectly.  It is by talented British artist, Rachel Toll (@Elidanza) , who has kindly agreed to let me share it with you here. My character, Tammo, is given the ability to charm birds with his flute.  This can also cause him to form a close bond with the bird in question, as happens with his pet crow, Coronis.  If you think this idea sounds a lot like Mozart's The Magic Flute , you're right.  And that's why Tammo's sworn twin, Carlo, always calls him Tamino. This piece of artwork seemed a perfect gift for Tammo.  (Perhaps I could give it as an Easter present to him!)  And since Tammo plays the flute, I had to try the tune on my flute too.  Because not all the notes were visible on Twitter, I improvised the bits I couldn't see,...

Spring has come to Britain at last!  It is April, when: smale fowles maken melodye, according to the poet Chaucer.  It's a time when birds fight for their territories, find their mates, build their nests and lay their eggs.  Outside my house, the favourite visitors are starlings, magpies, crows, pigeons and blue tits.  I'm sure we will see new young ones in the course of time. While working on my Angelio books, I have turned up a lot of interesting research regarding birds.  I thought I would share some of it with you here.  Here are 10 interesting facts: 1.  A common trick for a pet goldfinch was to draw up a tiny gold bucket on a chain to get its drink of water. 2.  "Whistling bullfinches" could be taught to sing a selection of folk tunes. 3.  Castrati were taught to imitate birdsong in their vocal performances. 4.  In Sufism, the language of the birds is a mystical language of angels.  (See The Conference of the Birds by 12th cen...