Notes

Ashlee is terrified of birds. Everybody in the Citadel is. Birds are blamed for the Plague that destroyed most of their civilisation. Guards now patrol the city to keep it free of birds and other dangers such as the Outsiders who live free in the wilds, and the Egghead scientists who challenge the truth of their stories, and ideas that lie in books and technologies. Without the birds, the bugs take over the gardens and become immune to the chemical sprays, so Ashlee's Papa, an Elder in the Council, is sent to other ruined cities to search out a solution. During his long absences Ashlee becomes a slave to her wicked stepfamily, but when a yellowhammer bird comes tapping at her window, it leads her to a message of hope ... and her lost brother, Felix. He has become a legend, a boy who talks to and flies with the birds. Ashlee has to confront her own beliefs and sift through the lies and fairytales to find the truth about herself, the past and her own father.