"... part comic adventure, part treatise about the "real-life power of birds"... a rousing flight of fancy that will inspire and entertain!"
——BookLife Reviews

★Part comic adventure, part treatise about the “real-life power of birds,” Winged Heroes offers a rousing flight of fancy that will inspire and entertain.
★Many readers who love comics will also connect with Emilio's passion for the Winged Heroes. Greene's illustrations are brightly colored with some fairly detailed cartooning. Characters are pleasantly expressive throughout their faces and bodies, but the movements of each character incorporate how birds really move.

Emilio is used to bullies stealing his lunch, predators on the prowl, and a sister who scolds him at every turn. If only he had the powers of his beloved WINGED HEROES, he wouldn’t feel like such a small bird in the big city. Why can’t he be as brave as Fantastic Felipe the falcon, as fierce as Raptora the eagle, or as clever as Aerial the hummingbird? They never have to put up with that stuff!

But then disaster strikes and it’s all his fault that he and his friends are in danger. Will Emilio be able to find what it takes to be a true hero? Join this loveable city pigeon and his feathered friends in an action-packed adventure that forces Emilio to dig deep, find the power within himself, and uncover the real-life superpowers of birds.

Birds have real superpowers!

Peregrine Falcons have super-speed and can fly up to 242 miles per hour as the fastest animal on earth. Hummingbirds have super-stability and can hover in place and fly backward like a helicopter. Snowy Owls have super-heaing and can find animals buried under snow by listening. Golder Eagles have super-sight, seeing prey more than a mile away. Wandering Albatrosses have super-endurance and can fly up to 75,000 miles a year across oceans. To humans, these and other natural bird superpowers are astounding.

But does an under-confident pigeon have any powers?

This is the story of Emilio, an ordinary kid who happens to be a pigeon. When life gets him down, he looks to his favorite comic book heroes for answers – The Winged Heroes. No matter what, they always find a way to save birdkind with their amazing superpowers and daring missions. So why can't he score even a small crust of bread at the park? Join Emilio on a journey to discover his own powers in a world of challenges.

Winged Heroes contains extensive backmatter for further learning, including a spread on "Pigeon Superpowers," a "Meet the Real Birds" section with full-color photographs and species info on the birds in the story, and Activities and Discussion Questions. The title and detail on the cover are foil-stamped silver, and the book has French flaps for easy bookmarking.

Birds in this book:
American Crow
Canada Goose
Homing Pigeon
Common Potoo
European Starling
Golden Eagle
House Sparrow
Osprey
Peregrine Falcon
Rock Pigeon
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Snowy Owl
Wandering Albatross

Readers are invited to take a scientific personality and behavior quiz, "What Winged Hero are you most like?" at WingedHeroes.com matching people with the Winged Heroes superhero they are most like!

Mya Thompson
Mya Thompson, Ph.D., is an author, educator, and biologist. She spends her days at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as the Co-Director of Engagement in Science and Nature helping people from all walks of life learn more about birds and natural systems. Before getting hooked on feathered animals, she studied elephant behavior in the rainforests of central Africa. She is the author of the picture book Ruby’s Birds and the graphic novel Winged Heroes, as well as the producer of a variety of educational games including Flap to the Future and BeastBox. Mya lives with her family in upstate New York.

Virginia Greene is an artist, a biologist, and a park ranger. She has followed a love of birds and nature though a variety of occupations, including an M.S. in Biology from William and Mary, a stint as the Bartels Illustrator at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and a year of Americorps service with Virginia State Parks. When she is outside, she is either looking up for birds or down for mushrooms, with a sketchbook at the ready.
Virginia lives in the mountains of Virginia and is grateful for those who have devoted their lives to birds and public education, like writer Mya Thompson.