The extraordinary, true story of an owl stranded on the deck of an oil rig one hundred miles from shore, and the Good Samaritans who shepherded it home.

This is the true story of a Short-eared Owl that plummeted onto the deck of an oil rig in the North Sea, one hundred miles from shore. Weak and tired, it huddled on the deck until riggers provided it with a makeshift shelter and fresh meat to eat. When a helicopter arrived to transport some of the workers back home, they took the owl with them, handing it over to the Scottish SPCA. A few weeks later the owl was strong enough to be released into the countryside.

Susan Vande Griek’s gentle prose poem describes this unusual encounter with a creature from the wild with curiosity and wonder. Ian Wallace’s stunning watercolors show gorgeous seascapes, the subtle beauty of the owl, and the oil rig and its workers, creating compelling visual contrasts.

An author’s note includes information about the Short-eared Owl, a bird found in the Americas, Europe and Asia, whose numbers may be in decline due to loss of habitat.

Key Text Features author’s note further reading sources

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.2 Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.4 Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.5 Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.3 Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.4 Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.7 Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.