Lasky included several species of owls in this book, and their different traits and abilities added some nice variety. I appreciated that their deaths resulted in more than just a paragraph or two of sadness, although I imagine it could be tough for sensitive younger readers. Just a warning: several characters are killed in this, and their deaths have an emotional impact on the main characters. Most were prevented from ever becoming true adult owls. The owlets were fed an inadequate diet of crickets, deprived of the ability to sleep properly, and subjected to 'laughter therapy' or forced plucking if they didn't unquestioningly follow the rules. I don't know if Lasky based it off of anything in real life, but I found myself thinking of assimilation camps.

Aggie's was a weird and disturbing place. I don't know if she's discovered this series yet, but I figured I'd give them both a shot and see what they were like.

I know she's reading Erin Hunter's Warriors series. My eldest niece is into animal books right now. Soren clings to his sense of self with the help of a new friend, an Elf Owl named Gylfie, and the two of them work together to find a way out of St. Each owlet is referred to by a number rather than their real name, everyone is made to undergo something called a 'sleep march,' and questions are forbidden. Aggie's seem to care, and things get worse from there. Soren knows that he isn't really an orphan, but none of the adults at St. Before anyone is able to help him, he's snatched away by an owl who takes him to St. He can't fly and is completely defenseless. There have been disturbing reports of owlets going missing recently, but it's not something Soren is particularly worried about.until his parents leave on a long hunting flight and Soren suddenly finds himself pushed out of his nest. Soren is a young Barn Owl living with his parents and two siblings, his older brother Kludd and his younger sister Eglantine.

The capture by kathryn lasky