Derrick Jackson Knihy

Fifty years ago, a young ornithologist named Steve Kress fell in love with puffin. After learning that hunting had eradicated their colonies on small, rocky islands off the coast of Maine, he resolved to bring them back. So began a decades-long quest that involved collecting chicks in Canada, flying them to Maine, raising them in coffee-can nests, transporting them to their new island home, watching over them as they grew, and then waiting—for years—to see if they would come back. This is the story of how the Puffin Project reclaimed a piece of our rich biological heritage, and how it inspired other groups around the world to help other species re-root in their native lands.

Set in a chaotic world filled with darkness, the story unfolds over a single day that transforms everything. Readers are immersed in a whirlwind of turmoil, where unexpected moments of redemption emerge amidst the chaos. The narrative explores the profound impact of this pivotal day on the characters and their lives, challenging the notion of normalcy and revealing the resilience of the human spirit.