Written by:Ted Cable & Jacey Cable
Illustrated by:Rita Kraushaar
Ted T. Cable, is a professor of park management and conservation, author of 12 books and more than 200 articles,
and traveler to all 50 states and more than 30 countries. He resides in Kansas and enjoys bird watching, traveling internationally and writing about
these activities.
Jacey Cable, Ted’s granddaughter, is a nine year old writer who has lived near Chicago and
Nashville and now resides in St. Augustine, FL. She enjoys school and excels at reading and
math. In her free time, you can find Jacey doing gymnastics, reading, writing
stories and poetry, playing guitar, and singing at church.
US $14.959 780989 183802
ISBN 978-0-9891838-0-2
51495>
Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Ted T. Cable
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any
means — electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise (except for brief quotations in reviews) — without the prior permission
of the copyright holder.
Library of Congress Catalog Number: 2013908931
ISBN: 978-0-9891838-0-2
Printed in the U.S.A. by Mennonite Press, Inc., Newton, KS 67114
To order additional copies of this book go to: www.itsabirdthing.com
THE KINGBIRD AND THE KINGLET
By Ted Cable & Jacey Cable
Illustrated by Rita Kraushaar
DEDICATION
Jacey would like to dedicate this book to the teachers that have influenced her, encouraged her creativity, and
made her want to write: Angela Rodgers, Rachel Kenyon, Mary Keller,
Lauren Cooper, Kim Gaines, and Gretchen Sting.
Ted would like to dedicate this book to his wife and Jayce’s grandmother
Diane who encouraged our family’s love of birds and the outdoors.
THE KINGBIRD AND THE KINGLET
Once upon a time there was a kingly Kingbird who thought he was indeed king of the birds. But the kingly Kingbird was not a calm and quiet Kingbird. Sometimes the Kingbird was cranky and crabby. He would call out warnings and threats to all the other birds with his rough raspy voice. If bluebirds got bossy or robins got rowdy, Kingbird would flash his red feathered crown and scold them with his sputtering stammering song. Kingbird was hurried and harsh; noisy and nosey.
But Kingbird was also brave.
He would chase away black
creepy crows and huge
hungry hawks that
might eat the
eggs or babies
of the smaller
birds in his woodland kingdom.
He was observant and adventuresome.
Kingbird watched over his forest from the top
of tall trees. He would fly from his high perch
to chase away invaders or to grab a bug for
breakfast from right out of the air.
Kingbird appeared quite dapper with his dark blue, almost black back and
tail and clean white breast. Just for
show, his tail had a white band
along the bottom of it.
He looked like
he was wearing a
tuxedo for a
fancy party.
One spring day, when the oak buds
were the size of squirrel ears,
a flittering fluttering
Kinglet flew into the forest.
The pretty little Kinglet was olive green with white
stripes on her wings. She happily
bounced from limb to limb like a butterfly. Kinglet looked like a tiny leaf in the trees,
so she blended into the forest unnoticed by
the other birds. Even the wise and watchful
Kingbird did not see her enter his Kingbird
kingdom.
Written by:Ted Cable & Jacey Cable
Illustrated by:Rita Kraushaar
Ted T. Cable, is a professor of park management and conservation, author of 12 books and more than 200 articles,
and traveler to all 50 states and more than 30 countries. He resides in Kansas and enjoys bird watching, traveling internationally and writing about
these activities.
Jacey Cable, Ted’s granddaughter, is a nine year old writer who has lived near Chicago and
Nashville and now resides in St. Augustine, FL. She enjoys school and excels at reading and
math. In her free time, you can find Jacey doing gymnastics, reading, writing
stories and poetry, playing guitar, and singing at church.
US $14.959 780989 183802
ISBN 978-0-9891838-0-2
51495>